Bexar County spider being removed from endangered species list

In 2000, the Braken Bat Cave meshweaver and eight other Bexar County karst invertebrate species were listed as endangered due to restricted distribution and threats from urban development, including a few local roadway and utility pipeline projects in previous years.

Based on the results of genetic and morphological studies, in 2018, researchers “synonymized” the Braken Bat Cave meshweaver with the Madla Cave meshweaver, meaning they are the same species, the release said.

Because the Braken Bat Cave meshweaver no longer meets the definition of a species under the ESA, the service removed this listed entity from the ESA.

However, because individuals previously attributed to this species have been synonymized with the endangered Madla Cave meshweaver, they will continue to remain protected under the ESA, the release said.

The federal agency said there is one unit of critical habitat designated for Braken Bat Cave meshweaver surrounding the area around Braken Bat Cave, which has been removed with the species’ delisting.

This unit, however, will remain designated critical habitat for an endangered beetle, the Rhadine infernalis, which also lives in the area, the release said.

The final rule removing the Bracken Bat Cave meshweaver name from the list of threatened and endangered species will be published in the Federal Register and will take effect 30 days after publication.

According to U.S. Fish and Wildlife, the agency’s findings are based on the best available science and include input and review from academia, state agencies, species experts and others. This conclusion has been supported by the scientific community, including the World Spider Catalog, the release said.