Avicularia bicegoi
Encyclopedia
Tarantula
Tarantulas comprise a group of often hairy and often very large arachnids belonging to the family Theraphosidae, of which approximately 900 species have been identified. Some members of the same Suborder may also be called "tarantulas" in the common parlance. This article will restrict itself to...
s of the genus Avicularia
Avicularia
Avicularia is a genus of the family Theraphosidae containing various species of tarantulas. The genus is native to tropical South America. Each species in the genus has very distinguishable pink foot pads....
. These spider
Spider
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
s may be frightening in appearance due to their large size (body length in excess of 2 inches, i.e., 5 cm.), but they share the pacific behavioral traits of most of the Avicularia species. In general, they bite prey and rely on their urticating hair
Urticating hair
Urticating hairs, i.e. stinging hairs, are one of the primary defense mechanisms used by numerous plants, some New World tarantulas, and various lepidopteran caterpillars. Urtica is Latin for "nettle", and hairs that urticate are characteristic of this type of plant, and many other plants in...
and flight for defense from predators. Unlike many new world tarantulas, spiders in the genus Avicularia do not flick their urticating hair. Instead they rub their abdomen directly on their perceived attacker. They may also shoot feces if frightened.
As with other Avicularia, these spiders are arboreal. They built a silk
Spider silk
Spider silk is a protein fiber spun by spiders. Spiders use their silk to make webs or other structures, which function as nets to catch other animals, or as nests or cocoons for protection for their offspring...
en shelter in a protected place amid the branches of trees or bushes. They are largely nocturnal in habit and so tend to eat moth
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
s and other insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s that move about above ground at night.
These spiders move very rapidly, even over very smooth surfaces such as glass. The two claws that end each leg are tufted with microscopic fibers that adhere to such surfaces by inter-molecular attraction. They have fairly good vision, but they are also sensitive to vibrations and to the rapidly changing air currents created by the beating wings of flying prey. When moths or other such insects come within reach these spiders support themselves using their rear legs and reach out to grapple their prey with their front legs.
Avicularia bicegoi are native to Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. Their venom
Spider bite
A spider bite is an injury resulting from the bites of spiders or other closely related arachnids.Spiders are active hunters and rely heavily on their bites to paralyze and kill their prey before consuming it. They also bite in self defense...
is not known to be medically significant and they rarely bite people. They are regarded as rarely available in the pet trade but highly suitable to beginning tarantula fanciers.