Chilean rose hair tarantula

Scientific name: Grammostola rosea

toxicity-level: Venomous

diet: Carnivore

range:South America

habitat:Deserts, Scrublands

Viewing Hints:

This animal ambassador lives behind the scenes at the Wieland Wildlife Home, but you could meet one at one of our evening events, at a pop-up animal encounter during your Zoo visit, or if you register for one of our education programs.

Photos and Videos

General Information:

Although this tarantula’s venom has not caused any known fatalities to humans, people may experience a range of allergic effects and caution must be taken when handling tarantulas. This venom is, however, fatal to the Chilean rose hair tarantula’s prey and acts as a digestive fluid that breaks prey down into a nutritious soup. New World tarantulas (those that live in the Americas) have urticating hairs on their abdomens that can be used for defense. When these small hairs are “flung” at a predator, they get into mucous membranes and cause breathing difficulty in small animals. In humans, they may cause inflammation similar to irritation caused by fiberglass. While most other spider species have only one set of book lungs, tarantulas have two.

Physical Features and Characteristics:

Like most tarantulas, the body of the Chilean rose hair tarantula is covered with hairs. These hairs serve various functions, from holding hairs to grip on varied surfaces and hairs for combing silk, to sensory hairs and urticating hairs used for defense. Body coloration ranges from a light brown to a dark copper color, and some individuals have a conspicuous pinkish-red hue. These color variations have led to erroneous classification within the genus Grammostola. Although this species is not sexually dimorphic, males often have shorter bodies compared to the females’ body size of up to 3 inches. Both sexes reach leg spans of almost 6 inches. Tarantulas go through a series of molts in which the exoskeleton is discarded, as it does not grow with the spider. Young tarantulas will molt up to four times a year and then less frequently until they are at maximum size.

Lifestyle and Reproduction:

Males will signify they are ready to mate by approaching a female in her burrow and performing a “dance” by vibrating the abdomen and tapping the front legs. When this is successful, the female will be enticed to follow the male out of the burrow. The actual mating process is usually over in about 30 seconds. Contrary to popular belief, most female tarantulas will not eat the male after mating, though this does happen occasionally. The female will lay anywhere between 50 to several hundred eggs in a small silken sac which she will guard for six to seven weeks.

Range:

In addition to their namesake Chile, these tarantulas are also native to Argentina and Bolivia.

Habitat:

This species thrives in dry desert and scrubland habitats.

Diet:

In the wild, these tarantulas will eat insects, frogs, spiders and small mammals such as mice. At Zoo Atlanta they are fed crickets which are fortified with vitamins.

Conservation:

Although this species is not currently listed as threatened, you can help Chilean rose hair tarantulas by researching their care requirements before bringing one into your home as a pet.