Tarantula

Overview
Like all arthropods, the tarantula is an invertebrate that relies on an exoskeleton for muscular
support.[4] Like other Arachnida, a tarantula’s body comprises two main parts, the prosoma (or
cephalothorax) and the opisthosoma (or abdomen). The prosoma and opisthosoma are connected
by the pedicel, or pregenital somite. This waist-like connecting piece is actually part of the
prosoma and gives the opisthosoma a wide range of motion relative to the prosoma.

Tarantula sizes can range from as small as the size of a BB Pellet[5] to as large as a dinner plate
when the legs are fully extended.[6][7] Depending on the species, the body length of tarantulas
ranges from 0.180 to 4.33071 in (5 to 110 mm),[5][8] with leg spans of 8–30 cm (3–12 in).[citation
needed]
Leg span is determined by measuring from the tip of the back leg to the tip of the front leg
on the opposite side. Some of the largest species of tarantula may weigh over 85 g (3 oz); the
largest of all, the goliath birdeater (Theraphosa blondi) from Venezuela and Brazil, has been
reported to attain a weight of 170 g (6.0 oz)[9] and a leg-span up to 30 cm (12 in), males being
longer and females greater in girth. The fang size of this tarantula reaches a maximum of 3.8 cm
(1.5 in).[9]

Theraphosa apophysis (the pinkfoot goliath) was described 187 years after the goliath birdeater,
so its characteristics are not as well attested.T. blondi is generally thought to be the heaviest
tarantula, and T. apophysis has the greatest leg span. Two other species, Lasiodora parahybana
(the Brazilian salmon birdeater) and Lasiodora klugi, rival the size of the two goliath spiders.

Tarantula at the mouth of its burrow

Most species of North American tarantulas are brown. Elsewhere, species have been found that
variously display cobalt blue (Cyriopagopus lividus), black with white stripes (Aphonopelma
seemanni), yellow leg markings (Eupalaestrus campestratus), metallic blue legs with vibrant
orange abdomen and green prosoma (Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens). Their natural habitats
include savanna, grasslands such as the pampas, rainforests, deserts, scrubland, mountains, and
cloud forests. They are generally classed among the terrestrial types. They are burrowers that live
in the ground.

Tarantulas are becoming increasingly popular as pets and some species are readily available in
captivity.
Etymology
The spider originally bearing the name "tarantula" was Lycosa tarantula, a species of wolf spider
native to Mediterranean Europe.[10] The name is derived from the southern Italian town of
Taranto.[11] The term "tarantula" was subsequently applied to almost any large, unfamiliar species
of ground-dwelling spider, in particular to the Mygalomorphae and especially the New World
Theraphosidae. Compared to tarantulas, wolf spiders are not particularly large or hairy, and so
among English speakers in particular, usage eventually shifted in favour of the Theraphosidae,
even though they are not closely related to the wolf spiders at all, being in a different infraorder.

A tarantula next to a U.S. size 11 shoe, to show scale, taken near Austin, Texas

The name "tarantula" is also incorrectly applied to other large-bodied spiders, including the
purseweb spiders or atypical tarantulas, the funnel-webs (Dipluridae and Hexathelidae), and the
"dwarf tarantulas". These spiders are related to tarantulas (all being mygalomorphs), but are
classified in different families. Huntsman spiders of the family Sparassidae have also been
termed "tarantulas" because of their large size, when, in fact, they are not related, and instead
belong to the infraorder Araneomorphae.

The element pelma in genus names

Many theraphosid genera have names, either accepted or synonymous, containing the element
pelma. This can be traced back to Carl Ludwig Koch in 1850,[12] who in describing his new genus
Eurypelma wrote "Die Sammetbürste der Fussohlen sehr breit",[13] literally 'the velvet-brush of
the footsole very wide'. German arachnologists use the word Fuß to refer to the tarsus (the last
article of a spider's leg).[14] Translations of Sammetbürste into Latin use the word scopula.[15]
Hence in English arachnological terminology, Koch meant 'the scopula of the base of the tarsus
very wide'. Eury- is derived from the Greek εὐρύϛ, meaning 'wide', while πέλμα (pelma) means
'the sole of the foot',[12] thus paralleling Koch's use of Fußsohle (in modern spelling). Thus
Eurypelma literally means 'wide footsole'; however, arachnologists have conventionally taken
pelma in such names to refer to the scopula, so producing the meaning 'with a wide scopula'.[12]

Other genus names or synonyms that Estrada-Alvarez and Cameron regard as having 'footsole' or
'scopula' meanings include:[12]

 Acanthopelma – Greek ἄκανθα (acantha) 'thorn, spine'; overall meaning 'spiny footsole'
 Brachypelma – Greek βραχύϛ (brachys) 'short'; overall meaning 'short scopula'
  Metriopelma – Greek μέτριοϛ (metrios) 'of moderate size'; overall meaning 'medium
length scopula'
 Schizopelma – from the Greek origin combining form schizo- 'split'; overall meaning
'split footsole'
 Sericopelma – Greek σηρικόϛ (serikos) 'silky'; overall meaning 'silken scopula'

Later, particularly following genus names published by R.I. Pocock in 1901,[16] the element
pelma appears to have become synonymous with 'theraphosid'. For example, the author of
Cardiopelma says "Cardiopelma fait réference aux genitalia de la femelle qui évoquent la forme
d'un Coeur" (Cardiopelma refers to the female genitalia that evoke the shape of a heart), with no
reference to either 'footsole' or 'scopula'. Names interpreted in this way include:[12]

 Aphonopelma – Greek ἄφωνοϛ (aphonos) 'soundless'; overall meaning 'theraphosid

without sound'
 Cardiopelma – Greek καρδία (cardia) 'heart'; overall meaning 'heart theraphosid'
(referring to the heart-shaped female genitalia)
 Clavopelma – Latin clavis 'club'; overall meaning 'theraphosid with club-shaped hairs'
 Delopelma – Greek δηλόϛ (delos) 'clear, obvious, visible, conspicuous, plain'; overall
meaning 'theraphosid without plumose hair'
 Gosipelma – the element gosi- means 'desert', relating to the Gosiute people; overall
meaning 'desert theraphosid'
 Spelopelma – Greek σπήλαιον (spelaion) 'cave'; overall meaning 'cave theraphosid'