Nemo goes viral: the tiny local spider that captured the attention of the world’s media
Last month we brought you the story of the Nemo peacock spider (Maratus nemo), a newly named little spider with an orange and white striped face that I found at Mt Burr Swamp (if you missed it, catch up here). Since the release of the scientific paper describing the spider on March 26th 2021, I have been amazed by the publicity my discovery has received!
![](https://natureglenelg.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Nemo-having-a-look-around.-S-Holliday-1-1024x788.jpg)
My media journey began with an interview with the Melbourne Museum which was responsible for releasing to the public the exciting find initially. Locally I was interviewed by two newspapers; you can see the Border Watch article below, or read it online here). I have also had radio stations contact me, but the story picked up the most publicity through Facebook pages sharing and re-writing it like the Nine News, ABC South East, and the Sydney Morning Herald just to name a few. The discovery was also shared by media in the UK, USA, Spain, China, India, and Japan! Most recently, I was even interviewed by National Geographic magazine! See the piece here.
I have to say that I am deeply humbled by the attention that a tiny little spider found in my neighbourhood has received, not just from here, but all over the world.
![](https://natureglenelg.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Nemo-Jumping-Spider-Border-Watch-2nd-March-2021-1024x714.jpg)