Tooth Cave pseudoscorpion Bio

Hello, and welcome to this very special edition of Texas Creatures I am your host Cali Wright. Today we will learn about some very special little guys that are endangered, the Tooth Cave pseudoscorpion. Scientifically called Tartarocreagris texana, this tiny invertebrate has a large name for a tiny physical size, about 3/16 in. only the size of a grain of rice.

As always, we must give a full introduction of our topic before we dive into the discussion. The Tooth Cave pseudoscorpion is native to Travis County Texas. A little family history, he belongs to the Animalia kingdom in the Arachnida class. In addition, this little guy has been endangered since 1988! That is a long time for the tiny invertebrate to hang on.

http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/water/tooth_cave_pseudoscorpio.htm

The Tooth Cave pseudoscorpion looks like an eyeless, tailless scorpion. Although not much is known about its day-to-day living, this under-rock dwelling creature is very uncommon because of all the construction and urban sprawl in its native Austin Texas. In order to successfully survive, the Tooth Cave pseudoscorpion must live in a high humidity environment with stable temperatures according to Texas Parks and Wildlife. Some caves where they once lived have even been covered and filled in.

These invertebrates do not have eyes to rely on, nor could they see well in the depths of a cave, so they rely primarily on their pinchers to capture prey. Unlike the scorpions we are used to seeing, this creature cannot use its poison tail to paralyze its prey before consuming it. It does however, possess venom that aides in the capture and intake of its prey. There have been many other uses found by bioprospectors, scientists who study the uses of venoms, for the venoms of invertebrates. Little is known about the specifics of the Tooth Cave pseudoscorpion, so it is distinctly possible that this extinct invertebrate could hold the cure for any number of ailments.

The Tooth Cave pseudoscorpion is listed as an endangered species. The Balcones Canyonlands Preserve (BCP) in Travis County Texas protects this tiny creature’s habitat along with only five other invertebrates native to the area. The BCP is “among the nation’s largest urban preserve systems” according to the Travis County official web site. Perhaps the real value of this creature’s conservation is yet to be discovered.

It is important to consider even the smallest organisms. When expanding our habitat we have to be careful not to destroy another one, who knows, we could accidentally destroy the cure for cancer.
Until next time, I am Cali and this has been another informative episode of Texas Creatures.

Sources:

http://ecos.fws.gov/speciesProfile/SpeciesReport.do?spcode=J00A

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/huntwild/wild/species/tpseudoscorpion/

http://www.co.travis.tx.us/tnr/bccp/species.asp