Harry Potter News and Updates: New Spider Species is Based on the Sorting Hat

Harry Potter has touched the lives of a lot of people all over the world. But who knew that this magical fandom would make its way to Science? When a new spider species was discovered, it was named after the memorable Sorting Hat of this fantastic movie series.

It is official! Harry Potter and Science are now linked together. This link comes in the form of a new spider species discovered by Javed Ahmed, and Rajashree Khalap. The reason why they named it after the Sorting Hat was because of its appearance. At first glance, you would automatically notice that it has similar characteristics with this fictitious object.

Ahmed and Khalap have been fans of the Harry Potter series even before delving in on their careers as Science researchers. Not only do these two share their love towards the fictional series but they also share their love for Science and discovery. With the emergence of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, they felt inspired to venture out and do their own hunting of creatures that are still undiscovered. In comes the new spider species.

As if by fate, they encounter this new spider species at a small grove in the Southwestern Indian State of Karnataka. This spot was considered a biodiversity hotspot that means that it is an area teeming with wildlife. The villagers and their ancestors have preserved it for years. There they found a lot of different species. One in particular brought their geeky fanaticism to life as the Sorting Hat of the Harry Potter series both came in their minds the moment they saw it.

The spider was in a mixture of different shades of brown and what made it peculiar was its shape! It looks like a triangle, much like the Sorting Hat in Harry Potter. The two scientists, along with their colleague Sumukha J.N., examined the arachnid. They confirmed that it was a new spider species and gleefully named it Eriovixia gryffindori. It was named as such because Godric Gryffindor, one of the Founders of Hogwarts, owned the Sorting Hat.

In the Indian Journal of Arachnology, the three researchers wrote about their experience and openly spoke about the tribute to its etymology. This did not go unseen as J.K. Rowling tweeted: "I'm truly honoured! Congratulations on discovering another #FantasticBeast!" This does not stop there, however. Ahmed proclaimed that their next new spider species discovery will be named of yet another Harry Potter character - Aragog.