Meet Christopher Darwin’s Pseudoscorpion

Article | Updated 7 years ago

Christopher Darwin’s Pseudoscorpion, or Synsphyronus christopherdarwini, is a terrestrial invertebrate that grows up to 0.5cm in length.

It is only found in the Charles Darwin Reserve in Western Australia, hiding under pieces of flaking granite. 

Appearance 

Pseudoscorpions are not true scorpions, and you’ll be happy to discover that they are not at all dangerous to humans. 

Christopher Darwin’s Pseudoscorpion is yellow-brown in colour. This flattened pseudoscorpion has dark pedipalps, and a carapace that is paler in the posterior region. 

Food and Behaviour

Little is known about the biology of Christopher Darwin’s Pseudoscorpion. 

Like other pseudoscorpions, it is a carnivore that feeds on small invertebrates. 

If this invertebrate is exposed when it does not want to be, it will remain still until the perceived threat has passed.

It is known to congregate in clusters of 5-20 individuals. 

Further Information

To find out more about pseudoscorpions, visit Pseudoscorpions of the World.

Here is a video of a similar pseudoscorpion to Christopher’s Darwin’s Pseudoscorpion. This pseudoscorpion is a different species but the same genus, just like a dog and a wolf are very similar, but also has some big differences in areas like behaviour and appearance.

Biological Classification 

Below is the basic order in which plants and animals are classified. Kingdom is the largest grouping, and Sub-species is the smallest (very specific).