Arizona Blond Tarantula #4

by Dennis Boyd

Title

Arizona Blond Tarantula #4

Artist

Dennis Boyd

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Photograph

Description

This female Blond Tarantula (photographed at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum) has a more stocky body than a male and is covered in a light brown or tan hair (thus it is sometimes called the Arizona Blond Tarantula). The male is thinner and "lankier", with black hair covering most of the body and reddish hairs on its abdomen. Tarantulas have two body parts (the cephalothorax and the abdomen), eight walking legs and two pedipalps that are used for touching and moving prey.
Tarantulas are very sensitive to vibrations in the ground that may indicate the presence of prey or danger. They are equipped with urticating hairs on their abdomen which can be released by kicking with the back legs; these hairs irritate the nose and eyes of would-be attackers.
Tarantulas live in dry, well-drained soils in open areas throughout the desert and grassland areas. All North American tarantulas are ground-dwellers although some other species live in trees, cliffs, caves, or in crops like bananas and pineapples.
Tarantulas occur worldwide. Those in North America occur in the southern and southwestern states, with many other species occurring to the south throughout Mexico, Central and South America.

Uploaded

August 9th, 2017

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