# What's your FAVORITE Aphonopelma species, and why???



## Great Basin Ben (Oct 12, 2010)

Hi there everyone, I am wondering if any of you that have ANY experience with our native North American Tarantulas, would like to offer any advice as to WHICH is your favorite Aphonopelma species, and if so, why. I'm BRAND NEW to Tarantulas, so I'm sure that there are MANY varieties of this Genus that I'm unfamiliar with, so please feel free to expand on the list.

A. chalcodes
A. hentzi
A. eutylenum
A. seemani (not North American, but a very familiar Aphonopelma species)
A. anax
A. iodium
A. nevadanum
A. mojave
and last but not least that I'm familiar with is A. moderatum

According to ZOO Zipcode, there are approx. 106 sub species of the Genus Aphonopelma. 

As well, I've seen what appear to be MANY sub-species varieties of A. chalcodes, or the Desert Blonde Tarantula) like the Payson, New River, Carlsbad, ect...

I'd LOVE to hear any info that you may have. Good experiences, GREAT experiences, tempermants, ect... I don't really know if this is worthy of a poll (yet), but after I can narrow it down to 4 or 5 Aphonopelma species, then perhaps.

MANY THANKS to all, and Take care,
Ben.


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## skippy (Oct 12, 2010)

Bicoloratum is my favorite


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## Hentzi (Oct 12, 2010)

A. hentzi is my firm personal favourite as well as being my first Tarantula, very placid nature good eater well mine is. As a rule I don't handle any of my Tarantulas but if I ever had to Aphonopelma's I would with no problems. You have to be patient with Aphonopelma's though as they are slow to do anything if you are patient get one . 

A Chalcodes are just the same imo.


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## sja69 (Oct 12, 2010)

I love the look of the Moderatum and would love to get one when a sling becomes available.


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## Sutekh (Oct 12, 2010)

skippy said:


> Bicoloratum is my favorite


Gotta second that! I hope Hope HOPE that it's a female (their coloration is amazing). I chose it over B. boehmei as they don't have the hair flicking reputation that boehmei does (same pattern...only boehmei is a little redder orange than bicoloratum).
A. moorae seems to be very rare, but if colored like it looks like online then it is very stunning (like a GBB!) 
Of course with most Aphonopelma they grow VEEEEERRRRYYYYY slowly, so I hope you're a patient person. The good part of the slow growth though is that if you get a female it might live 30 years!


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## Terry D (Oct 12, 2010)

Guess I'm gonna have to stick with the home-t's and say A hentzi. 

You just can't beat that deep chocolate brown and tan-colored carapace. Then you have mm's with their blacker coloration on legs and fire red hairs on the black opisthosoma. I know......that sorta describes quite a few U.S. species


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## possumburg (Oct 12, 2010)

I have 3 hentzis and they are awesome, great eaters constantly busy working on their burrows. Just an all around great species.


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## jt39565 (Oct 12, 2010)

I can only speak for the little 1.5" A. anax that I have, it has almost a King baboon attitude. Gotta like that ! definitely a genus I want to get to know better.


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## Great Basin Ben (Oct 12, 2010)

possumburg said:


> I have 3 hentzis and they are awesome, great eaters constantly busy working on their burrows. Just an all around great species.


I have YET to read about anyone who didn't say almost these exact same things about the hentzis. I AM actually quite a patient person, and I don't think their slow growing stature is much of a problem for me. The reports ALL seem to mirror this one, that hentzis are quite amiable, neat little critters! I am definately looking to add some to my collection. 

Has ANYONE here had any experience with A. nevadanum? Being from Nevada, I'm guessing that this is my best chance at a wild caught variety, within a short drive from my house. Although, I wonder if what we have here in Northern Nevada are actually another variety, or even sub variety of chalcodes???


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## Anubis77 (Oct 13, 2010)

Great Basin Ben said:


> As well, I've seen what appear to be MANY sub-species varieties of A. chalcodes, or the Desert Blonde Tarantula) like the Payson, New River, Carlsbad, ect...


Subspecies aren't used with tarantulas, but your line of thinking is more on par to the probable reality of the taxonomic situation. A lot of the locality labels are just that, localities. Not entirely different species like we may wish they were. The whole genus is going to be cut down in size with future revisions most likely.

Aphonopelma is my favorite genus. It's the only one I get to see in the wild, and see it I do. As much as I like the big tan and black spiders, A. behlei wins out. They're smaller and not so friendly, but they're my unattainable species. I've only ever found a male in the wild and someone gave me a female. Never found a female in all my trips to Payson.







And if we're talking slow growth rates, this is a 3 year old spiderling:







I bought it in 2007, and it hardly hits 0.5" today.



Great Basin Ben said:


> Has ANYONE here had any experience with A. nevadanum? Being from Nevada, I'm guessing that this is my best chance at a wild caught variety, within a short drive from my house. Although, I wonder if what we have here in Northern Nevada are actually another variety, or even sub variety of chalcodes???


It's A. iodius actually. A. chalcodes doesn't extend into Nevada. Definitely not into the Reno area.

Reactions: Like 1


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## possumburg (Oct 13, 2010)

Anubis77 said:


> Subspecies aren't used with tarantulas, but your line of thinking is more on par to the probable reality of the taxonomic situation. A lot of the locality labels are just that, localities. Not entirely different species like we may wish they were. The whole genus is going to be cut down in size with future revisions most likely.
> 
> Aphonopelma is my favorite genus. It's the only one I get to see in the wild, and see it I do. As much as I like the big tan and black spiders, A. behlei wins out. They're smaller and not so friendly, but they're my unattainable species. I've only ever found a male in the wild and someone gave me a female. Never found a female in all my trips to Payson.
> 
> ...


Now that is one beaut of a spider!


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## Great Basin Ben (Oct 13, 2010)

+100 to ^ comment. That's ONE REMARKABLE Tarantula. 

I had heard that the Tarantulas here in the high desert around Reno, were _A. iodius_. Several friends, on a rockclimbing weekend, last weekend, found a LARGE population, of what I will hopefully be able to confirm as _iodius_. Do the A. nevadanum exist solely in the Vegas part of the State? I have been looking for as much *specific* info about the various species of Aphonopelma as I can, as I find them to be one of the Genus that also fascinates me most. I wish it were as simple as a copy of Aphonopelma for Dummies, but somehow I doubt it's going to be that simple. HAHA!


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## Versi*JP*Color (Oct 13, 2010)

Great Basin Ben said:


> +100 to ^ comment. That's ONE REMARKABLE Tarantula.
> 
> I had heard that the Tarantulas here in the high desert around Reno, were _A. iodius_. Several friends, on a rockclimbing weekend, last weekend, found a LARGE population, of what I will hopefully be able to confirm as _iodius_. Do the A. nevadanum exist solely in the Vegas part of the State? I have been looking for as much *specific* info about the various species of Aphonopelma as I can, as I find them to be one of the Genus that also fascinates me most. I wish it were as simple as a copy of Aphonopelma for Dummies, but somehow I doubt it's going to be that simple. HAHA!


Like he mentioned, there is no a.nevadanum.
In Nevada the prime tarantula (from what i've read) is Iodius.

BTW T's like A sp New Rivers are not a subspecies with Chalcodes 
COMPLETELY different


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## Great Basin Ben (Oct 13, 2010)

SpyderBoy606 said:


> Like he mentioned, there is no a.nevadanum.
> In Nevada the prime tarantula (from what i've read) is Iodius.
> 
> BTW T's like A sp New Rivers are not a subspecies with Chalcodes
> COMPLETELY different


Of the 106 species of the Aphonopelma Genus, _A. nevadanum _*is* a valid species listing. However, to my understanding, New River, Payson, Mesa Mountain ect, are all just variants of the _A. chalcodes_. Is there any peer reviewed literature that can confirm or deny this? 

Again, I wish it were as simple as Aphonopelma for Dummies.

It does make sense that the Sierras probably have isolated the California varieties from the Nevadan ones, but the Chalcodes is native to a bordering State in Arizona. While they might not have wandered this far north, could it be assertainable that the _iodius_ and the _chalcodes_, at some point shared the same vicinities, breeding grounds, prey, and habitat? To take it a step farther, I think that the _iodius_ species, was isolated long enough, at more Northern lattitudes, that it evolved to be able to winter over in MUCH colder climates; but short of this small adaptive variation, they are still VERY MUCH like their _hentzi_, _anax_, or _moderatum_ counterparts, in terms of habitat, biology, fecundity, and longevity. I simply wonder if ALL North American species of Tarantula, that belong to the Genus Aphonopelma, were merely isolated sub-species of what, at one point, was essentially a generic homogenous "North American Tarantula".


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## Anubis77 (Oct 13, 2010)

Great Basin Ben said:


> Of the 106 species of the Aphonopelma Genus, _A. nevadanum _*is* a valid species listing. However, to my understanding, New River, Payson, Mesa Mountain ect, are all just variants of the _A. chalcodes_. Is there any peer reviewed literature that can confirm or deny this?


As far as A. nevadanum goes: http://research.amnh.org/iz/spiders/catalog/THERAPHOSIDAE.html

Search for the species name. It's a synonym for A. iodius. This is the site to go when you want the most accurate species listing of Theraphosidae.

Brent Hendrixson is working on revising the Aphonopelma genus. His results won't be published in the near future though, so Aphonopelma will remain a mess for a few more years.


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## Moltar (Oct 13, 2010)

I'm a fan of the little ones. I have an A. huachua and an A. witchitanum that are just awesome lil gals. The huachua is feisty too! I'm actually not sure if A. witchitanum is a dwarf or not. The 2.5" specimen in mt T room seems to have mature coloration so... (shrugs). If she ever molts I'll see how much she grows. (Been almost a year now)


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## Great Basin Ben (Oct 13, 2010)

Anubis77 said:


> As far as A. nevadanum goes: http://research.amnh.org/iz/spiders/catalog/THERAPHOSIDAE.html
> 
> Search for the species name. It's a synonym for A. iodius. This is the site to go when you want the most accurate species listing of Theraphosidae.
> 
> Brent Hendrixson is working on revising the Aphonopelma genus. His results won't be published in the near future though, so Aphonopelma will remain a mess for a few more years.


MANY MANY THANKS for this!!! I'll also be eagerly awaiting Hendrixson's paper. This is excellent to know, and I shall use THIS reference from this point forward, to look up any of these Aphonopelma species related musings. THIS IS AWESOME!


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## Harlock (Oct 13, 2010)

I'd have to agree with the A. behlei.  Mines a sweetheart though.  I'd choose her over my A. waconum, and hentzi.


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## TomM (Oct 13, 2010)

Hentzi said:


> A. hentzi is my firm personal favourite as well as being my first Tarantula, very placid nature good eater well mine is. As a rule I don't handle any of my Tarantulas but if I ever had to Aphonopelma's I would with no problems. You have to be patient with Aphonopelma's though as they are slow to do anything if you are patient get one.


+1 ... I got an A. hentzi as my first T, definitely a good decision.  In general, they are a lot slower than other T's and a lot more manageable for beginners.  The only downside is the extremely slow growth.  I got a .75" hentzi and a 1" LP almost exactly a year ago to the day, the hentzi is only 1" now and the LP is 6" (although the LP is male, not sure of the hentzi's sex).


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## possumburg (Oct 13, 2010)

Harlock said:


> I'd have to agree with the A. behlei.  Mines a sweetheart though.  I'd choose her over my A. waconum, and hentzi.


I love all three of my hentzi to death but I MUST find one of those for my collection!


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## Shaka (Oct 13, 2010)

Aphonopelma Clarki

It's tan and chocolate coloration combination looks awesome.

Shaka


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## Great Basin Ben (Oct 13, 2010)

The _A. moorei _are QUITE BEAUTIFUL as well! But I must agree with you guys on the _behlei_.  That is one amazing looking Tarantula! Does anyone on here have JUST an Aphonopelma collection? With SO MANY species, it seems like a comprehensive Aphonopelma collection would truly be something to behold!


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## recluse (Oct 13, 2010)

A. paloma and the rest of the Arizona dwarfs.


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## possumburg (Oct 13, 2010)

Great Basin Ben said:


> The _A. moorei _are QUITE BEAUTIFUL as well! But I must agree with you guys on the _behlei_.  That is one amazing looking Tarantula! Does anyone on here have JUST an Aphonopelma collection? With SO MANY species, it seems like a comprehensive Aphonopelma collection would truly be something to behold!


I have actually thought about trying to do that. I think it would be awesome to have at least one of all the aphonopelma species. Only problem is the moorei are very hard if not impossible to come by from what I understand.


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## Sutekh (Oct 13, 2010)

possumburg said:


> I have actually thought about trying to do that. I think it would be awesome to have at least one of all the aphonopelma species. Only problem is the moorei are very hard if not impossible to come by from what I understand.


Personal opionion only: I honestly don't think moorei exist. Or to be more accurate, I believe they are GBB's displaced at some time to Mexico. If is looks like a duck, etc etc.


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## possumburg (Oct 13, 2010)

Sutekh said:


> Personal opionion only: I honestly don't think moorei exist. Or to be more accurate, I believe they are GBB's displaced at some time to Mexico. If is looks like a duck, etc etc.


I can definitely see why you would say that. I have even wondered the same thing myself. They look pretty much identical.


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## Noexcuse4you (Oct 13, 2010)

_Aphonopelma reversum_ is my fav.  They're jet black and they're local.  Can't get much better than that!


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## Great Basin Ben (Oct 13, 2010)

Noexcuse4you said:


> _Aphonopelma reversum_ is my fav.  They're jet black and they're local.  Can't get much better than that!



VERY NICE!!! I fancy myself travelling throughout the West and Southwest trying to collect as many species of Aphonopelma as I can. This one is definately one that I'd be proud to add to a comprehensive Aphonopelma collection for sure! That is also a VERY BEAUTIFUL little black North American Tarantula!!! Thanks for the post!


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## Warren Bautista (Oct 13, 2010)

Not a classified spieces, but I will never get rid of my female Aphonopelma sp "Carlsbad Green" .


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## Scoolman (Oct 16, 2010)

That is a beautiful T NoExcuse. I want some of those.


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## Scoolman (Oct 16, 2010)

Warren Bautista said:


> Not a classified spieces, but I will never get rid of my female Aphonopelma sp "Carlsbad Green" .


I have a little 2" one. It is my little teddy bear.


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## mickey66 (Oct 17, 2010)

*my fav*

I like aphonopelma chalcodes and all the arizona variants....


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## Great Basin Ben (Oct 17, 2010)

mickey66 said:


> I like aphonopelma chalcodes and all the arizona variants....


ME TOO!!! Thanks for the post.


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## Great Basin Ben (Oct 17, 2010)

I'm beginning to think that I like the Aphonopelma species A LOT!!! I went out today, and found a colony of A. iodius burrows, and will hopefully go back tomorrow, but this time, won't forget the water! :wall:


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## brian abrams (Oct 19, 2010)

*Aphonapelma Sp*

A Calchodes & Hentzi grow too darn slow!!  My new fav Aphonapelma..... A Reversum. Wow!!! looks just like a Pulchra!!


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## LeilaNami (Oct 20, 2010)

A. chalcodes is my favorite.  The female I had was very gentle and made fantastic burrows conveniently against the plastic for my viewing pleasure.


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## hamfoto (Nov 26, 2010)

Sutekh said:


> Personal opionion only: I honestly don't think moorei exist. Or to be more accurate, I believe they are GBB's displaced at some time to Mexico. If is looks like a duck, etc etc.


Seriously???

This makes my head feel like it's going to explode...:barf:

It's pretty easy to go find information on whether or not this is a valid species.  It's from Mexico, Andrew Smith described it, and the locality is far away from the US border...oh yeah, _Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens_ is from Venezuela, a small area in Venezuela.

Chris


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## josh_r (Dec 22, 2010)

A. moorei is very much a real species. I seend um wit mee own eye bawls! They are very very cool! as for my favorite species of aphonopelma, there are too many cool ones to have just one fav, so heres my top 10

cryptethum
mojave
paloma
joshua
moorei
behlei
cochisei
sp. 'huachuca'
sp. 'hualapai'
reversum

there are many other undescribed things out there that are just stunning as well! like these medium sized velevet black things with BRIGHT pink hairs all over them, from SE AZ. and there are a bunch of other species I have yet to go find, so that is my top 10 for now.


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## kevin91172 (Dec 22, 2010)

*A. anax*

My favorite is the A. anax.Because they are from here in Texas,although I do not see them anymore as I did as a kid.It was my first T when I knew nothing about them and before the internet and or AB Only learned from experience at the age of 10.The big female I have now I think I got from California.Just crazy.
Although I had a failed breeding attempt with a male that was wild caught this summer from a guy about 100 miles from me. 

 But Jees this sp grow slow....


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## ajhere (Dec 22, 2010)

i would say  Aphonopelma serratum mine is only 1inch but showng tht purplish red hairs very docile in loves her worms and crickets


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## Great Basin Ben (Dec 23, 2010)

Yeah, what Josh said...:clap:


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## josh_r (Dec 25, 2010)

Cryptethum is a spider i found when i was younger and it had been my ultimate favorite for many years. It is a jet black spider with an almost heart shaped urticating patch and SUPER stalky with the typical dwarf aphonopelma attitude. I have been back to that area one other time to look for it, but never succeeded in finding it again. Its definitely worth the trip to look for though :drool:


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## BrettG (Dec 26, 2010)

Any of the dwarfs. the guy above me got me hooked.......


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## mitchrobot (Dec 27, 2010)

would LOOOOOVVVEE to get a moorei

my favorite is the classic a.moderatum. i no longer have a big female (just a small PU male...3.5") but plan on getting another girl one of these days. very pretty spider when fresh from molt

my old girl and a mm


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## Bosing (Dec 27, 2010)

Wow! I want the jet black A. reversi.  

From what I have, the A. bicoloratum is my favorite but the A. moderatum is fast catching attention.


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## josh_r (Dec 28, 2010)

To really appreciate the genus, you really have to spend some time with them, especially in the field. You really need to see as many different species as well to truely see how different they all are. They may not be super colorful. They may not be drastically different, but its the subtle differences that make them so cool. Plus, they are our natives


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## ErinKelley (Dec 29, 2010)

josh_r said:


> To really appreciate the genus, you really have to spend some time with them, especially in the field. You really need to see as many different species as well to truely see how different they all are. They may not be super colorful. They may not be drastically different, but its the subtle differences that make them so cool. Plus, they are our natives


Wish I lived farther south to go see some myself.  Has anyone ever found any T's in Idaho??  I know we have some scorpions...

Anyways, I have 1 A. behlei and 4 A. moderatum, all still very small and going on about 2 years old now.  I love the coloring of these 2 species.  

I need to research some of the smaller "dwarf" species, they would probably be my next Aphonopelma purchase.


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## TrentinG (Dec 29, 2010)

I know its not really a real one but my A sp New river is my favorite of any aphonopelma. Shes about 4.5 or 5 inches. my cousin has a seemani a chalcodes a hentzi, but i ike the new river over all of those


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## josh_r (Dec 29, 2010)

ErinKelley said:


> Wish I lived farther south to go see some myself.  Has anyone ever found any T's in Idaho??  I know we have some scorpions...
> 
> Anyways, I have 1 A. behlei and 4 A. moderatum, all still very small and going on about 2 years old now.  I love the coloring of these 2 species.
> 
> I need to research some of the smaller "dwarf" species, they would probably be my next Aphonopelma purchase.


Be sure that in making your next purchase that you are not supporting mass wild collection of these spiders. I would ask lots of questions and make sure you are buying CB stock. Now with the drawves, any adults you find on any price list WILL be wild caught! There has only been a small number of CB dwarves introduced to the hobby that I know of as I am the one that produced them and distributed them. PLEASE try to locate some of these spiders over buying wild caught!! They are out there.


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## BrettG (Dec 29, 2010)

Josh has a great point..Thee are a couple guys down here who do nothing but collect,and it has taken its toll on a few different locations.There are places where there used to be large paloma colonies that have been collected to death.I see no harm in observing a colony,and even taking a specimen to enjoy as a pet/breeder,but taking 10+ as some people here in Az are is ludicrous.


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## ErinKelley (Dec 30, 2010)

josh_r said:


> Be sure that in making your next purchase that you are not supporting mass wild collection of these spiders. I would ask lots of questions and make sure you are buying CB stock. Now with the drawves, any adults you find on any price list WILL be wild caught! There has only been a small number of CB dwarves introduced to the hobby that I know of as I am the one that produced them and distributed them. PLEASE try to locate some of these spiders over buying wild caught!! They are out there.


Very good point.  I would not want to support the dessimation of our wild populations.  I've raised every one of the T's I have, besides a rosea and a large female albopilosum.  I have nooo problem growing a T for 10 years lol.


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## Arachnos (Dec 30, 2010)

skippy said:


> Bicoloratum is my favorite


+1 for Aphonopelma bicoloratum. I am lucky to have a beauty. Some of the best coloration I have seen on this species.


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## josh_r (Dec 30, 2010)

BrettG said:


> Josh has a great point..Thee are a couple guys down here who do nothing but collect,and it has taken its toll on a few different locations.There are places where there used to be large paloma colonies that have been collected to death.I see no harm in observing a colony,and even taking a specimen to enjoy as a pet/breeder,but taking 10+ as some people here in Az are is ludicrous.


What floors me is that people are aware that a majority of the aphonopelma available are wild caught but people keep buying them. Its too bad people dont focus more on captive breeding instead of wild collecting. I have seen several populations of spiders go bye bye. As for paloma, they seem to be holding on pretty strong in the populations I know of. I would love to talk with you about this in private some time BrettG

Josh


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## BrettG (Dec 31, 2010)

josh_r said:


> What floors me is that people are aware that a majority of the aphonopelma available are wild caught but people keep buying them. Its too bad people dont focus more on captive breeding instead of wild collecting. I have seen several populations of spiders go bye bye. As for paloma, they seem to be holding on pretty strong in the populations I know of. I would love to talk with you about this in private some time BrettG
> 
> Josh


Feel free to shoot me a PM anytime,Josh....I would love to try my hand at breeding dwarfs,but I cannot find enough to really give it a go..I'd do just about anyhting for  good breeding pair of any of our smaller T's.


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## MrDusty (Dec 31, 2010)

I'd say A seemanni without a doubt...although I personally don't believe A guat, A crin, A seem or the bluephase are true aphonos, the just don't act or resemble the NA aphonos at all. I am biased though since I've had my seemanni for 8 years and she's a gorgeous little deep blue beast with her uber thick orange stripes.


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## Zoltan (Jan 1, 2011)

MrDusty said:


> I personally don't believe A guat, A crin, A seem or the bluephase are true aphonos, the just don't act or resemble the NA aphonos at all.


The late Mr. Reginald Innes Pocock disagrees with you and he is right. _Aphonopelma seemanni_ *is* the true _Aphonopelma_, and the other species might be not. This is because of the fact that the type species of the genus _Aphonopelma_ is _A. seemanni_.


Zoltan said:


> the North-American spiders known as _Aphonopelma_ (ie. _A. moderatum_) and _Aphonopelma seemanni_, while officially are in the same genus, in reality they are most likely different, and belong to different genera. But the type species of _Aphonopelma_ is _A. seemanni_, this means that it's the defining species of the genus - it's the *true, real Aphonopelma*. To put it in another way: assuming that _Aphonopelma_ is a valid genus, you can be 100% sure that the type species of _Aphonopelma_, _A. seemanni_, is indeed an _Aphonopelma_. All the other species were placed into this genus at some point, because they were _found to be_ sharing more characteristics with, therefore being closer relatives of _A. seemanni_ than to other species, but this is subject to change, if somebody can prove that they belong to a different genus.


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## MrDusty (Jan 1, 2011)

Zoltan said:


> The late Mr. Reginald Innes Pocock disagrees with you and he is right. _Aphonopelma seemanni_ *is* the true _Aphonopelma_, and the other species might be not. This is because of the fact that the type species of the genus _Aphonopelma_ is _A. seemanni_.


Ohh...so A seemanni was the original Aphono? Then I guess I have it backwards hrm ? A seemannis are beautiful little T's though, it's a shame you can't find them WC anymore because not a lot of people breed them in comparison to the others...they really seem to be an underrated T. A lot of people don't even tend to realize that the regular A seemanni is suppose to be blue since they grey out about halfway through a molt cycle. They tend to assume the regular seemannis must be bluephase is they show any blue at all, whereas the blue phase has weaker striping and IMO a much prettier blue color.


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## esotericman (Jan 1, 2011)

josh_r said:


> What floors me is that people are aware that a majority of the aphonopelma available are wild caught but people keep buying them. Its too bad people dont focus more on captive breeding instead of wild collecting. I have seen several populations of spiders go bye bye. As for paloma, they seem to be holding on pretty strong in the populations I know of. \
> 
> Josh


Go through any forum, and you'll see people expand, mushroom, and wither in the hobby within less than 5 years.  Last time I did any real counting the average was around 3 years, and the life span of dealers is not exactly stellar either.  The point being, it takes education at the ground level for folks to see the "value" of waiting.  I suspect if one were to count all the posts and threads on supporting "power feeding" and then count all those supporting "breeding natives" it's going to easily be 10 to 1.  It is awesome, and in this case that is such a weak word, to see anyone breeding natives.  The problem comes when you bust out a vial with a .5" spiderling and say "And it's 3 years old!".  I personally see that same spiderling as infinite potential and it's WC soon-to-be-traded-several-times-in-it's-lifetime adult counterpart as nearly no potential.

As for Aphonopelma, I'm also waiting eagerly for the genera revisions.  And until then, my favorites are all of those which require little care from this hairless beach ape, and grow like bonsai trees.


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## Great Basin Ben (Jan 2, 2011)

*some pic of MY favs*

Courtesy of Josh, HERE, are a few pics, of *MY favorite Aphonopelmas*. In at #1, is _Aphonopelma hualapai_, (currently described as Aphonopelma Mojave Eastern Complex.)













Following the hualapai, at the #2 spot, I fancy the Aphonopelma paloma as my alltime favorite Aphonopelma. The pics speak for themselves, with these feisty little ones!


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## josh_r (Jan 2, 2011)

I found that particular paloma pictured at above 5000' in elevation in juniper forest right at the edge of the pine belt. Another female was found at above 6000' in elevation in dense pine forest. This suggests that paloma is not just confined to sonoran desert habitat as thought before, or...... these are infact not paloma but a new species. Who knows......Here is a picture of an adult female from sonoran desert habitat on the north end of phoenix











And here is a burrow of an ADULT female paloma. VERY small!!!!






Here is that same female as above quite a while later 












---------- Post added at 10:41 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:34 PM ----------

'hualapai' makes the coolest burrows of any native, thats for sure! Walking into a big colony of these guys looks like little donuts plopped all over the desert floor












---------- Post added at 10:52 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:41 PM ----------

And here is a cool pic. Bet ya cant tell whats what! Theres 'hualapai, mojave and paloma in this pic.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Great Basin Ben (Apr 3, 2012)

*How are my Dwarf Aphonopelma officianados out there doing?!*

Been a LOOOOOOOOooooonG time, but very happy to be back. I still have my T's, and am ALWAYS still on the lookout for ANY new dwarf Aphonopelmas!!! Mine, (sold to me a paramoguli, but likely Eastern Mojave complex? Tomotoe/tomotto?) is still the apple of my eye of my invert collection, and I'd LOVE to get her some companions of sorts....  PLEASE PM me if you know of any available.
:biggrin:


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## seacowst (Apr 3, 2012)

A.hentzi all the way!!! love the color and there pretty docile too


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## Terry D (Apr 4, 2012)

Yet another avid supporter of sum big-n-juicy hentzi home-girls. (-:


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