''Nhandu tripepii'' is a

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 ...

species, and is a theraphosine theraphosid. It is native to

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

.''Nhandu tripepii'' Dresco, 1984
''World Spider Catalog''. Natural History Museum of Bern. Retrieved February 11, 2016.

Taxonomy

''Nhandu tripepii'' was originally described as ''Eurypelma tripepii'' by Edouard Dresco in 1984, then changed to ''Hapalopelma tripeppi'' by

Robert Raven Robert John Raven is an Australian arachnologist, being the Head of Terrestrial Biodiversity and the Senior Curator (Arachnida) at the Queensland Museum. Dr Raven has described many species of spider in Australia and elsewhere, and is spider bit ...

in 1985. Meanwhile, in 1998,

Gunter Schmidt Gunter Schmidt (born 22 November 1938) is a German sexologist, psychotherapist and social psychologist. He was born in Berlin. Schmidt was the director of the centre for sexual research in the clinic of the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppe ...

described ''Vitalius vulpinus'' as a separate species, with

Rogério Bertani Rogério Bertani is a Brazilian arachnologist, active at the Butantan Institute. He is credited as one of the foremost specialists in Theraphosidae Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. , ...

changing the name to ''Nhandu vulpinus'' in 2001. Roberto Nagahama, Caroline Fukushima, and Bertani recognized ''H. tripepii'' as ''Nhandu tripepii'' and made ''N. vulpinus'' a senior synonym of ''N. tripepii''.

Characteristics

''Nhandu tripepii'' has a tibial spur, and when this is flexed, the retrolateral branch touches the first

metatarsus The metatarsal bones, or metatarsus, are a group of five long bones in the foot, located between the tarsal bones of the hind- and mid-foot and the phalanges of the toes. Lacking individual names, the metatarsal bones are numbered from the med ...

. The female is distinguished by its long

spermatheca The spermatheca (pronounced plural: spermathecae ), also called receptaculum seminis (plural: receptacula seminis), is an organ of the female reproductive tract in insects, e.g. ants, bees, some molluscs, oligochaeta worms and certain other ...

e and solid colouration. The type male is 5 cm, and the female is 8 cm.

As a pet

''Nhandu tripepii'' is skittish and quite aggressive; therefore, it is not ideal for beginners. It has weak venom but

urticating hair Urticating hairs or urticating bristles are one of the primary defense mechanisms used by numerous plants, almost all New World tarantulas, and various lepidopteran caterpillars. ''Urtica'' is Latin for "nettle" (stinging nettles are in the genu ...

. It has 500-1500 spiderlings and is relatively easy to breed. Females have a lifespan of 10 years in captivity but as they grow quickly, reach maturity at about three years. It needs a temperature of 25-29 °C and a humidity of 75-80%.Nhandu trpepii
DcTarantulas.Weebly.com. Retrieved February 11, 2016.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2484288 Theraphosidae Spiders of Brazil Spiders described in 1984