TWO rare and distinctive species of spider have been spotted in Fingle Woods in the Teign Valley.

A rare Philodromus margaritatus, or otherwise known as a Lichen running-spider, was recently found in the Fingle woods owned by the Woodland Trust and National Trust.

Nationally there have only been 56 recorded sightings of this species, only 15 of which were reported post-1992.

A Nuctenea umbratica or toad spider — uncommon in the South West — was also seen in a nearby woodland spot.

The spiders were found and photographed by Matt Parkins, a volunteer for the Woodland Trust.

Matt was checking the wooden dormice boxes, which have been set up in the woods as part of a research project, when he spotted the unusual looking arachnids.

David Rickwood, site manager for the Woodland Trust, said: ‘We’re excited to hear that these rare species of spider are calling Fingle home. It’s yet another reminder of how wonderful and diverse the woodland is, and why it’s so vital that we manage and restore it in the right way.’

Mr Parkins took photographs of the spiders before sending them to Dartmoor blogger Adrian Colston.

Adrian said: ‘Spiders can be notoriously difficult to identify from photographs — often you need to put a specimen under the microscope and look at features which are invisible to the naked eye.

‘However these two species looked identifiable just from the photographs.’

He said that he recognised one of the spiders but not the other, so appealed via social media for more information.

‘The species I was unsure of turned out to be very rare nationally and quite a find,’ said Adrian.

The Running Lichen spider is known from scattered localities in the south of England and central Scotland, but has rarely been sighted.

The spider was described by experts as male with a body of around 4.5mm long.

Adrian said he identified the toad spider instantly, as he was familiar with them from his time in the east of England, but had discovered that this species of spider was less common in the south west.

Pictures of the two spiders by?Matt Parkins.