whats the difference between the b.boehmei and the aphonopelma bicoloratum

vohnholley

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
Joined
Jun 12, 2009
Messages
120
Okay so i got up this morning and i was thinking what to buy next. I saw a ad in the for sale section and got to wondering. What is the difference between the aphonopela bicoloratum and the brachypelma boehmei.To me they look totally the same.Today while i was reading i realized the two tarantulas i got last year dont look like boehemeis that i already have. maybe they are bicoloratum.Please give me some input on what anyone thinks.
 

Amoeba

Arachnolord
Joined
Jun 13, 2011
Messages
603
Spermatheca and other stuff.

Here is the other stuff:

Brachypelma boehmei. The visual differences to the naked eye are: Aphonopelma bicoloratum is smaller, the caput of the carapace in Aphonopelma is raised and high, whereas in Brachypelma boehmei it's flatter. Their coloration is not the same either, but that might be hard to notice on pictures. A surefire way to decide whether it's Brachypelma or Aphonopelma is to take a look at the prolateral surface of the femur of the first leg: in Brachypelma you can find stridulatory setae, while in Aphonopelma the stridulatory setae are absent. This is noticeable with a magnifying glass or maybe even with the naked eye on bigger specimens-- the prolateral femur looks different, kind of has a greyer, silvery look. You can also check this on exuviae.
 
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mcluskyisms

Arachnoangel
Old Timer
Joined
Apr 16, 2009
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843
The main differences are the shape of carapace and caput, also Aphonopelma spp. have much bigger chelicerae than that of Brachypelma spp. If you put some photos up of the two tarantulas you mention that may help, the differences between the two species are quite easy to spot.
 

sjl197

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Feb 3, 2008
Messages
240
:) spiders with bigger chelicerae seem to always have a bigger caput :) (note = caput is the 'height of the carapace, normally raised in the front quarter in some species, such as Aphonopelma bicolouratum). I agree this is a good way to differentiate. Obviously, spermatheca shape, male spur and bulb shape etx, the adult males go rather black. Smaller in general that B.boehmei.
 
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