Tarantula Facts
Information about Tarantulas
[source from: http://pw2.netcom.com/~cnames/spider.html]
Tarantulas are the biggest of spiders. They have eight legs, are often hairy, and have two big fangs. Some are dull brown, while others can be brightly colored. The sizes range too as small as a fingernail, too as big as a dinner plate. Woah, that’s a big spider.
Tarantulas can live in rainforests and desserts.. Their prey is insects, and even rodents and small birds. They hunt by stalking, slowly creeping up. Then they quickly leap onto their prey and stick their hollow, furry fangs into the prey. Venom is pumped in and liquefies the prey’s insides. Then the spider eats it like bug soup. Mm!
Surprisingly, tarantulas spend a lot of their time hiding when they’re not hunting. Lots of animals will try to eat them although some do not succeed, for the tarantula has a few good defenses. The hairs on the back less and abdomen can break off with the slightest touch; borrowing into an enemy and making them itch terribly. They are also pretty fast runners, with eight legs! And if all else fails, they can bite, but their venom is used mainly for eating prey.
For some reason tarantula’s reputation isn’t that good. Maybe because they are big. Maybe because they are hairy. Maybe because they are poisonous. Well, yes, they are big, and hairy. They do have poison, but it can’t kill a person unless you’re allergic to it. For most people, tarantula bites are no worse than a bee sting.
People are sometimes worried they are in the bananas in grocery stores. That is extremely rare, so don’t worry!
The tarantula is a wonderful animal. Take a little closer look, and you’ll see something amazing.
Facts about the Tarantula
- Tarantulas will go bald on their thorax when they get old!
- Tarantulas have tiny hairs on the back of their abdomen and back legs that will stick to an enemy if disturbed and ITCH.
- Tarantulas have re-tractable claws, just like cats!
- Some tarantulas can get as big as dinner plates!
- Tarantulas’ bite is actually not that dangerous; no more worse than a bee sting (unless you’re allergic, of coarse).
| Tarantula Names Source from: http://maxpages.com/tarantulas/Names copyright |
| Original Source From The American Tarantula Society-Forum publication |
Check out all the different types of tarantulas there are in the world! The name on the left side of the table is the scientific name. The name in yellow is the common name.
| African | Asian |
| Ceratogyrus bechuanicus curvedhorn Ceratogyrus brachycephalus greaterhorned Ceratogyrus cornuatus straighthorned Citharischius crawshayi king baboon Eucratoscelus longiceps African redrump Heteroscodra maculata Toga starburst Hysterocrates crassipes Cameroon brown Hysterocrates gigas Cameroon red Hysterocrates laticeps Cameroon rustred Pterinochilus meridionalis Zimbabwe gray Pterinochilus murinus Mombasa goldenstarburst Pterinochilus sjoestedti Kilimanjaro mustard Stromatopelma calceatum featherleg |
Chilobrachys andersoni Burmese mustard Chilobrachys sericeus Asian mustard Cyriopagopus paganus Asian chevron Haplopelma lividum cobalt blue Haplopelma minax Thailand black Ornithoctonus andersoni Asia mahogany Poecilotheria fasciata Sri Lankan ornamental Poecilotheria formosa Salem ornamental Poecilotheria ornata fringed ornamental Poecilotheria regalis Indian ornamental Poecilotheria rufilta redslate ornamental Poecilotheria subfusca ivory ornamental Selenocosmia javanensis Javan yellowknee Selenocosmia lanipes New Guinea brown |
| South American | North/Central American |
| Avicularia avicularia pinktoe Avicularia juruensis Brazilian yellowbanded Avicularia metallica whitetoe Avicularia purpurea Ecuadorian purple Avicularia urticans Peruvian pinktoe Avicularia versicolor Antilles pinktoe Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens greenbottle blue Crassicrus lamanai cinnamon Lasiodora parahybana Brazilian salmon Lasiodorides striatus stripeleg Megaphobema robustum Colombian giant Megaphobema velvetosoma Ecuadorian brownvelvet Pamphobeteus antinous Bolivian blueleg Pamphobeteus fortis Colombian brown Pamphobeteus insignis Colombian purplebloom Pamphobeteus nigricolor common bluebloom Pamphobeteus ornatus Colombian pinkbloom Pamphobeteus vespertinus redbloom Grammostola alticeps Brazilian graysmoke Grammostola burzaquensis Argentinean rose Grammostola grossa Pampas tawnyred Grammostola iheringi Entre Rios Grammostola pulchra Brazilian black Grammostola rosea Chilean rose |
Aphonopelma anax Texas tan Aphonopelma bicoloratum Mexican bloodleg Aphonopelma chalcodes desert blond Aphonopelma eutylenum California ebony Aphonopelma hentzi Texas brown Aphonopelma moderatum Rio Grande gold Aphonopelma rusticum Arizona olive Aphonopelma seemanni Costa Rican zebra Brachypelma albopilosum curlyhair Brachypelma angustum Costa Rican red Brachypelma auratum Mexican flameknee Brachypelma baumgarteni Mexican orangebeauty Brachypelma boehmei Mexican fireleg Brachypelma emilia Mexican redleg Brachypelma epicureanum Yucatan rustrump Brachypelma klaasi Mexican pink Brachypelma smithi Mexican redknee Brachypelma vagans Mexican redrump Cyclosternum fasciatum Costa Rican tigerrump Megaphobema mesomelas Costa Rican redleg Metriopelma zebrata Costa Rican suntiger Phormictopus cancerides Haitian brown |
Where The Name Tarantula Came From
[Source from: http://chekware.simplenet.com/burrow/btstalk.htm]
Copyright: By: Martin Overton
The name tarantula comes from a real spider that is found in Spain, it lives mainly in an area around the town of Taranto. In fact the real tarantula (The European Wolf Spider, Lycosa Tarantula) is distantly related to the other spiders that share its name.The real tarantula is a small slightly hairy spider (about 2 inches ((5cm)) across). It is not dangerous to humans!
The people of the Spanish town of Taranto, believed that if they were bitten by they spider that they called tarantula, if the bite was not treated quickly, that they would die.
The only way to survive it's bite, they believed, was to do a dance called the Tarantella. This involved very fast spinning and jumping until they could dance no more and fell to the ground exhauasted. This the locals believed was the only cure.
The real Tarantula of course is, like the other spiders wrongly named after it, are not really dangerous to most humans. You may feel a little sick if you have been bitten by a tarantula, but normally that is all.
Nowadays, all large hairy spiders have been given the name tarantula, even though many are only very distantly related to the real tarantula. Tarantulas are often called bird eating spiders, very few actually eat birds, those that do usually raid nests and take the young chicks, most however, like our native spiders only eat insects.
