Brachypelma albopilosum

Brachypelma albopilosum
Honduran curlyhair tarantula
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Mygalomorphae
Family: Theraphosidae
Genus: Brachypelma
Species: B. albopilosum
Binomial name
Brachypelma albopilosum
Valerio, 1980[1]

Brachypelma albopilosum is a species of tarantula,[1] known as the curlyhair tarantula. Its native range is Costa Rica.[1] They are terrestrial, opportunistic burrowing spiders. This tarantula is covered in long hairs that have a characteristic curl to them giving them a unique look.

Description

The curlyhair tarantula is a plump-bodied spider, covered with dark brown to black hair. It has a golden-bronze sheen due to longer gold hairs that cover the whole body, which are particularly dense on the hind legs.[2] Males are often a lighter bronze color than females.[3]

Range and habitat

Brachypelma albopilosum is native to Costa Rica.[1] A burrowing species, the curlyhair tarantula is found in tropical scrubland, either around the base of large trees, near rivers, or in patches of cleared rain forest.[3]

Biology

Receptive females will allow a male to mate, usually during the rainy season, resulting in the making of an egg sac and the laying of 300 to 500 eggs several weeks later. The egg sac is incubated for about seven to eight weeks at 24 to 27 degrees Celsius, after which pale-colored young emerge and cluster together. The spiderlings develop quickly, molting again over the next couple of weeks, by which time they disperse to live independent lives. Unreceptive females are likely to be aggressive towards approaching males and may try to kill and eat them.[3]

Primarily a nocturnal, opportunistic ambusher, the curlyhair tarantula preys on insects and small vertebrates. An area on the end of each leg is sensitive to smell, taste and vibration, and is used to detect prey. The tarantula holds its prey with its pedipalps (front limbs) and injects it with venom delivered via two hollow fangs. This venom has a double purpose, paralysing the prey, as well as beginning digestion.Once the venom has acted the tarantula is able to suck up the proteins and fats of its prey, leaving just a small ball of undigested body parts.[3] This usually docile tarantula will kick hairs off the abdomen with its hind legs when threatened, which cause blindness if they hit the eyes of a predator and can also cause a rash on the skin.

Conservation

The largest threat to the curlyhair tarantula is now habitat loss. Once captured in large numbers for the international pet trade, the curlyhair tarantula is now bred in captivity worldwide and relatively few are caught in the wild.[3] Listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), the curlyhair tarantula can now only be traded internationally according to quotas and with trade permits.[4]

As pets

B. albopilosum is frequently kept and bred in captivity. They are highly adaptable to humidity and temperature changes and they feed readily on commercially available crickets, superworms, cockroaches and even small mice. They are typically docile. Females are long-lived, potentially reaching 15 years of age. The recommended humidity for these tarantulas is between 65 – 80%. Temperatures should range around 70 – 85 degrees F.

References

This article incorporates text from the ARKive fact-file "Brachypelma albopilosum" under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License and the GFDL.

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Taxon details Brachypelma albopilosum Valerio, 1980". World Spider Catalog. Natural History Museum Bern. Retrieved 2016-03-27.
  2. ↑ "Eight: A site about tarantulas". April 2005. Retrieved July 21, 2011.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Baxter, R.N. (1993). Keeping and Breeding Tarantulas. Ilford, Essex: Chudleigh Publishing.
  4. ↑ "CITES". CITES. April 2008. Retrieved July 21, 2011.
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