Chilean Rose Tarantula - Grammostola rosea
Habitat:
shallow burrows in the deserts and scrubland
Range:
Bolivia, Northern Chile, and Argentina
Activity Cycle:
nocturnal, likes to burrow
Features:
rose haired have a brown body but the cephalothorax is colored a slight metallic pink (where they get their name). males have more pink coloration than females 8 legs and two pedipalps that are used as “arms” 8 tiny eyes (capable of little more than distinguishing light and dark) molt to increase size fangs which have a pulpy liquid that allows the spider to kill, absorb, and digest the body of its prey.
Size:
4 ½ to 5 ½ inches
Social Structure:
tarantulas are solitary
Life Expectancy:
males 7-8 years; Females 20-25 years
Diet:
crickets, grasshoppers, beetles, roaches, pinkie mice, and sometimes other tarantulas, frogs, and spiders
Interesting Facts:
- tarantulas usually give off several warnings before biting
- one of their warnings is flicking off hairs from their abdomen into their predator’s skin (causing irritation); this is why their abdomens sometimes have a bald patch
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