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Texas Tarantula (Aphonopelma)
101108
 The
photo on the right was taken by Sara
P., in Spring Branch, Texas, just north of San Antonio. She wrote:
"I found this spider on Oct. 11, 2008 at 8 P.M. on
our back porch. We temporarily caught it to photograph, but want to keep
it if that's the right thing to do."
Keeping tarantulas
is, indeed, the right thing to do, provided the keeper follows
a few important rules. Tarantulas will bite--and inject venom into
the flesh of the person bitten--if mishandled, and the resulting wound can
be as painful and lasting as a bee or wasp sting. For most persons no
additional consequences accrue, but others may be susceptible to
life-threatening allergic reactions. Tarantulas are not endangered, and
certain parts of Texas have an abundance of them at particular times of
the year. Their range, in North America, includes the southern and
southwestern U.S. The genus
Aphonopelma was named by R. I. Pocock,
of the British Museum, in 1901; the two Greek roots, aphonos
"silent, mute", and pelma "sole of the foot," signify 'the
silent Theraphosid without a stridulating organ on the posterior
trochanter of the palp'. See Spiders of North America, an
identification manual, D. Ubick, et al, p. 279.
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TERMITE ENCOUNTERS *
SNAKE ENCOUNTERS * SNAKE
BITE FIRST AID *
SNAKE
EXCLUSION *
SPIDER
ENCOUNTERS *
SPIDER
BITE FIRST AID *
SPIDER
EXTERMINATION
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PUSS CATERPILLAR ENCOUNTERS *
PUSS CATERPILLAR FIRST AID *
PUSS CATERPILLAR EXTERMINATION
*
Assembled & Edited by
Jerry Cates. Questions? Corrections? Comments?
BUG
ME
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NOW!
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