Lesson 28: Observing the Tarantula

            Tarantulas are spiders that are part of the Theraphosidae family. They can be big and hairy, but they can also be as small as your fingernail. There are about 900 species of tarantula in the world. The biggest tarantula is the Goliath Birdeater, but they usually do not eat birds. A cool fact is that they can live for 15-25 years! Many tarantulas are very hairy, and they rub their abdomen to get the hairs off of them and into the air. If the hair gets in your eyes or if you breathe them in, they can be very irritating and make you cough. Tarantulas do not live in webs, but they live in burrows underground and usually build a web inside the burrow. They hunt by waiting for prey to come near them and then they jump on them and bite with their very sharp fangs. Another cool fact about the Goliath Birdeater is that their fangs are sharper and as long as a cheetah’s claws! I think tarantulas are pretty cool, and I actually held one at the Butterfly Pavilion. It tickled my hand when it walked on it because it was so furry.