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Missouri Tarantula

Missouri Tarantula

Video of a Missouri tarantula in the wild.
Aphonopelma hentzi
Family: 
Theraphosidae (tarantulas) in the order Araneae (spiders)
Description: 

This hairy species is Missouri's largest spider. The body and legs are uniformly dark chocolate-brown, with reddish hairs on the carapace. The tarantula's large size and shaggy appearance is frightening to many people, leading them to believe it has a ferocious nature. It actually is a shy creature, quick to evade humans. Tarantulas are typically at home in areas seldom frequented by people. In late summer and fall, south Missourians often see these large arachnids crossing roads. This wandering phenomenon has been documented in male tarantulas in southern california, but it has not been studied in Missouri.

Size: 
Length (not including legs): Females average 2 inches; males about 1 1/2 inches.
Habitat and conservation: 
They appear to prefer dry rocky glades, where they spend their days in silk-lined burrows in abandoned rodent or reptile tunnels or in other natural cavities. Like many hunting spiders, tarantulas are active at night, when they pursue insects such as crickets.
Foods: 
Despite what you might see in horror movies, tarantulas don't spin webs to catch their prey. They walk on the ground and grab insects that they encounter, or that amble past them. Like other spiders, they have fangs that deliver a venom that both subdues their prey and helps digest it. Tarantulas are not aggressive to humans.
Distribution in Missouri: 
Occurs mainly in south and central Missouri, in appropriate habitats. The Missouri River apparently acts as a barrier to the spider's movement into northern Missouri.
Status: 
This species is sometimes called the Texas brown tarantula or the Oklahoma brown tarantula. Its range extends from Kansas and Missouri south to Louisiana, Texas and Arizona, so this spider might as well be named after any of the states it lives in! This is one reason why scientists prefer precise Latin names, which don't vary with local usage.
Life cycle: 
Females secure their egg cases in silken webbing attached to the inner walls of their burrows, and guard their eggs until they hatch. Often, the young stay with the mother for about a week before dispersing. Most of our spiders live for only a single season, but tarantulas can potentially live for years. Females can live for up to three decades, though males rarely live more than a year.
Human connections: 
Many people keep tarantulas as pets and feed them crickets, cockroaches, beetles and the like. They are docile and interesting to handle and watch.
Ecosystem connections: 
Spiders are predators that help control the populations of the species they consume. In turn, they feed other predators. Thus the burrows tarantulas inhabit function not only as places to lie-in-wait for potential meals, but also as refuges from lizards, birds, skunks and other enemies.

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