Desert Tarantula

Aphonopelma chalcodes

Tarantulas are the largest spiders in the world, and in spite of how they are portrayed in the movies, are not really dangerous to humans. Tarantulas spend most of their lives underground in burrows; they sit by the entrance at night and wait for insects and other small animals to wander too close. Most people see tarantulas during mating season, when males leave their burrows and search for the burrows of adult females. Males live to be 10 or 11 years old; they die after mating. Females can live 25 years or more; they can mate and lay eggs several times during their lives.

Look For : Head and thorax grayish brown; abdomen brown-black, hairy.

Length : 2-2 3/4".

Habitat : Desert.

Range : Southwest.