These Insects Redefine “The Groove”

In a testament to the idea that the mating instinct prevails, a concept first introduced in Palm Desert, California at the literal hotspot of The Nest restaurant and lounge in the late 1990’s, a tiny jumping spider is rewriting the abridged history of lust.

The vibrant confines of The Nest, featuring a throng of people of all ages glittering in the intoxicating environment and coerced to get up and dance by a live performance of retired off-Broadway performers, put the Palm Springs region on the international map for after hours fun. However, a diminutive spider species of Western Australia well-disguised to predators when not courting the opposite sex, has patented the spontaneous art of grooving hundreds of thousands of years and the entire family tree of John Travoltas ago.

WATCH the luminescent night moves of Meratus volans 

Nicknamed the Peacock spider for an iridescent breathtaking solo act when attempting to attract a mate rivaling the effulgent antics of the temperamental bird moving to its own wondrous beat of courtship, the insect is a beneficiary of the affordable digital camera age. In a rare testament to the positive influence of reliable and powerful photo technology of the digital age that does not entail a disgusting series of selfies, legions of professional entomologists and amateur naturalists, have traveled to the breathtaking wilderness to hopefully capture the pre-mating ceremony of a male Meratus volans engaged in a private audience with an eligible female. The images recorded are nothing short of amazing, and the videos transcend the eloquent beauty of nature.

With adults averaging around a quarter of an inch in size and harmless to humans, the creature inhabits a number of microclimates on the Australian continent, and uses its record breaking jumping ability and quickness, a specimen was measured clearing distance 40 times its body length, to prey on other spiders and small insects. If the raw physical attributes are not enough, the Peacock spider is equipped with eight high definition eyes offering nearly a 360 degree visual display, featuring telephoto lenses, that can see the entire visible spectrum of light and into the UV-range.

With the insect trending, and justifiably so, as one of the Covid-19 internet sensations, new variants of species over the last decade have been discovered, providing just another reason for those afflicted by arachnophobia to avoid visiting the Land Down Under.

Fortunately, the vast majority of Nest patrons dancing the night away do not possess the laser eyesight of the Peacock spider in seeing their partner clearly, and as a result, the mating instinct lives on.