The New Crawlers with Curls
What has eight legs and never has a bad hair day? Our new curlyhair tarantulas! Six spiders have joined the pack at Kids’ Zone and will stay with us until they mature into adulthood.
As their name states, these tarantulas have a distinct appearance, with dense, curly hair covering their bodies. This feature gives them a striking appearance and plays a role in their survival by acting as a defense mechanism. When threatened, the tarantula will use its hind legs to kick up hairs at their predators.
Our spiders are almost three years old, and the sex ratio remains unknown. We’ll be waiting until they grow and molt to be able to identify them correctly. Males live around 7-8 years and will live for only about one year after maturity, making them a pretty hot commodity. The females can live 20+ years! Once the males are mature, they’ll be the first to travel to new facilities to be paired with mates.
The Central American species is extremely docile with a mild venom potency, so it’s a great choice to destigmatize spiders and showcase how incredible they are. The tarantulas will join our other ambassador animals and participate in close encounters. So you may see these cute, hairy spiders on Zoo grounds with a keeper nearby!
Conservation Efforts
Acquiring these tarantulas is part of our partnership in Safety Web for Arthropod Reproduction and Management (SWARM). Within this program, zoos collaborate to perfect the care and breeding of critical species. This partnership helps promote sustainability and reduce pressure on wild populations.