''Chaetopelma olivaceum'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of mygalomorph

spider Spiders ( order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species ...

, belonging to the

tarantula Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. , 1,040 species have been identified, with 156 genera. The term "tarantula" is usually used to describe members of the family Theraphosidae, although ...

family (Theraphosidae). It has many

synonyms A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

, including ''Ischnocolus jerusalemensis''. Common names used include black furry, black tarantula and Middle East gold.

Range and habitat

The species is found in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

and the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

. It is very common inside homes in Israel.

Description

The body length is approximately 2.5 cm for adult males and 5 cm or larger for females. pp. 21–22 It is one of the largest spiders in Israel. The color varies between black, gray and brown dark; they tend to be paler in the cooler more forested regions of their range and darker in the southern more arid areas. The body is covered with tiny hairs and is shiny and velvety. There are variations in appearance and size throughout the range. Their food consists of insects and even small mice and young lizards. The species is sexually dimorphic: the female is larger than the male.

Behavior

The species is active mainly at night. In the wild they can be found hiding under rocks or bark, but may reach human-occupied areas during migrations. When the spider feels threatened, it lifts its front torso, swinging its feet to expose a red stain on its mouth and claws. If the threat continues the spider will turn and look for a place to hide. ''C. olivaceum'' has been reported as living in large colonies and this has been observed in the burial caves around Jerusalem and reported from dried up wells in the Jordan Valley.

Relation to humans

This spider is not considered dangerous to humans and helps eliminate pests such as

cockroaches Cockroaches (or roaches) are a paraphyletic group of insects belonging to Blattodea, containing all members of the group except termites. About 30 cockroach species out of 4,600 are associated with human habitats. Some species are well-known a ...

. It is black, furry, fast and aggressive in respect to other types of tarantulas. Bites are unpleasant but mild. They are sometimes kept as pets.

Predators

In Israel two species of spider wasp, '' Hemipepsis brunnea'' and '' Pseudopompilus humboldti'', have been recorded as predators on ''Chaetopelma olivaceum''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1315859 Theraphosidae Spiders of Asia Spiders of Africa Spiders described in 1841