A fungus named after Sir David Attenborough zombifies cave spiders

A newly discovered fungus — named after naturalist Sir David Attenborough — transforms cave spiders into zombies. The species (Gibellula attenboroughii) forces reclusive arachnids into exposed areas, likely to benefit the dispersal of spores, researchers report January 24 in Fungal Systematics and Evolution.

The freaky fungus was first spotted on an orb-weaving spider (Metellina merianae) by a team filming a BBC documentary series in Northern Ireland in 2021. (It was also later found in the Republic of Ireland.) Researchers in the United Kingdom teamed up with mycologist João Araújo of the Natural History Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen to learn more about the fungus.

The Gibellula genus of fungi are spider specialists, Araújo says. Scientists believe that after a spore lands on a spider, the fungal cell sinks into the body and multiplies, consuming its host’s internal organs. “If we cut through the infected spider, we don’t see any spider anymore,” he says. “It’s just the fungal mass inside, which is the shape of the spider.” Fruiting bodies shaped like lollipops also emerge to spread spores to new hosts.

To investigate whether the documentary’s grotesque fungal guest was a new species, Araújo and colleagues considered its ecology, shape and genetics. This was the first known Gibellula found in cave spiders, showing it occupies a unique niche, Araújo says. Additionally, physical characteristics of the fungus’s structures, such as the fruiting bodies and spore-producing cells, and distinctions in its DNA suggested the species stood out.

Moreover, G. attenboroughii–infected cave spiders, which also include Meta menardi, typically hide away in their webs, Araújo notes. Because the zombified spiders traveled to cave entrances before dying, he and his colleagues hypothesize that the fungus drove the arachnids there because the airflow helps to disperse spores. The behavioral change resembles that seen in fungus-infected ants.

Besides being a bewitching example of a parasite-host relationship — a video narrated by Attenborough sparked Araújo’s fascination with zombifying fungi — researching this association has practical applications, too. These fungi could aid pest control in crops and lead to medical innovations, Araújo says. Cyclosporine, for example, is a drug with origins in a zombifying fungus that helps prevent rejection of transplanted organs.

Building that knowledge base requires studying fungal species one by one, he adds. “Maybe today, there’s not an immediate application. But maybe someday, after all these pieces are put together, we can figure out something bigger.”