Small female T that I've had for 5-6 years; previous owner had for 8 prior to me. Captured as 'sling in backyard near Las Crucas, New Mexico. Mostly black, reddish setae on abdomen and underneath legs, very docile.
It is definately NOT a Brachypelma vagans; I have an adult female of this species, and she is MUCH, much bigger than this spider, although she is not as old; the personality is also very different, as is the marking pattern. B. vagans is also not found in NEW Mexico, which is quite some distance from central part of Mexico, and was the locale where this T was found. B. vagans is native to the Yucatan pennensula, a long, long way from New Mexico, in the American Southwest. I'm also not aware of any "color variants" among the B. vagans species, although there are a lot of "pet trade" B. vagans which are probably B. angustum or hybrids, as they lack the intense red coloring of the real thing, which can still be found as an introduced colony in Florida. The red on a real adult B. vagans has to be seen to be believed, and as pretty as my little Mystery T is, her coloration cannot compare.
I used to live in Las Cruces during my college days and saw several tarantulas near my home. I did have a large (very large) female, that had similar coloration to your tarantula, living in my planter in the front yard. Don't know exactly what flavor of Aphonopelma your's is. Unfortunately, there is much confusion over the whole Aphonopelma clan. They are great critters though.
I would have to say its a Aphonopelma sp. Malinche - poss serratum. Go to www.kenthebugguy.com and look at the pic he has of one for sale. They look identical..
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