Mexican redknee tarantula
| Mexican redknee tarantula | |
|---|---|
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| Mexican red knee tarantula, female. | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Family: | Theraphosidae |
| Genus: | Brachypelma |
| Species: | B. smithi |
| Binomial name | |
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Brachypelma smithi (F. O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1897) |
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| Synonyms | |
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Eurypelma smithi |
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Eurypelma smithi
Euathlus smithi
Mexican redknee tarantula (Brachypelma smithi) is a terrestrial tarantula native to the western faces of the Sierra Madre Occidental and Sierra Madre del Sur mountain ranges in Mexico. They are a large species, and are a popular choice for enthusiasts. Like most tarantulas, they have a long lifespan.
The mature B. smithi has a dark-colored body with orange patches on the joints of its legs. The second element of the legs is orange-red. Following molting, the colors are more pronounced. The dark portion is very black, while the orange-red portions are far more on the reddish side.
An adult male has a body roughly 4 in long, with a leg span of 6 in, and a mass around 15 g. Both sexes are similar in appearance, with the male having a smaller body, but longer legs. Though the male is of comparable size to the female, the male has a much smaller mass.
The Mexican redknee grows very slowly and matures relatively late. The females of this species can live up to 30 years, but the males tend to live for only 5 years or so.
Like all tarantulas, the Mexican redknee is an arthropod, and must go through a molting process to grow. Molting serves several purposes, such as renewing the tarantula's outer cover (shell) and replacing missing appendages. As tarantulas grow, they regularly molt (shed their skin), on multiple occasions during the year, depending on the tarantula's age. Since the exoskeleton cannot stretch, it must be replaced by a new one from beneath. A tarantula may also regenerate lost appendages gradually, with each succeeding molt. Prior to molting, the spider becomes sluggish and stops eating to conserve as much energy as possible. Their abdomens darken; this is the new exoskeleton beneath. Normally, the spider turns on its back to molt and lies still in that position for several hours. Once this has been accomplished, the tarantula does not eat for several days to weeks, and not uncommonly for up to a month or more after a molt, as its fangs are still soft; the fangs are also part of the exoskeleton and are shed with the rest of the skin. The whole process can take several hours and sheaths the tarantula with a moist new skin in place of an old, faded one.
Like most New World tarantulas, they kick urticating hairs from their abdomens and their back legs if disturbed, rather than bite. They are only slightly venomous to humans and are considered extremely docile, though, as with all tarantulas, allergies may intensify with any bite.
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Wikipedia