Animal Planet's "The Real Lost World"

Amanda

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This program just started! The description reads "The inspiration for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's 'The Lost World,' the mysterious jungle plateau, Roraima."

Roraima is a sandstone plateau located where the borders of Venezuela, Guyana, and Brazil meet. The sandstone has actually been dated to 1.8billion years old. The area is so isolated that more than 1/3 of life there is found only there.

Anyhoo, there's a group of scientists from different fields on the expedition to the top, and who was up first?? Rick West! He hunted a short distance and found a gorgeous T. apophysis. They're finding crazy snakes and insects too. Looks interesting, and should air a few times before they put the show back on a shelf.

It's not even a documentary about Ts, and 15min into the show, I've seen 2!

Edit: Perhaps this belongs in the Announcements Forum. *shrug*
Just watch it. ;)
 
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Amanda

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Ouch. They're filming a tarantula hawk wasp dragging its victim into the burrow to lay its egg. It was already stung and paralysed. :( Rick West actually looked pained standing inches over it to watch and describe it. If they'd gotten there moments earlier, he could've shooed it off.
 

ZooRex

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Yeah I was lucky enough to catch the last 10min. I don't have cable, but was at a relative's house who does and as I was flippin around and happend apon it. I was really glad, I thought I'd miss it!

Anyway, have any of you read "Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's the Lost World"? that is hands down my all time favorite book. ~ Rex
 

GoTerps

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I saw this on Discovery HD earlier this year.... cool program.

Eric
 

pitbulllady

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I've seen the part where Rick West finds the big female T. apophisis, and lets her walk around on him. This spider was a docile as my G. aureostriata, and indeed, he describes the species as being docile in general and said that he was not worried about being bitten at all, even putting his hand directly in front of the T to stop her forward progress. I would not have even described her behavior as skittish, let alone defensive, although everything I have read on this species and the closely-related T. blondi has always stated that they are very aggressive. The only defensive thing that this one did was to kick a few hairs when he put her back down her burrow.

pitbulllady
 

Crotalus

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pitbulllady,
a spider taken out of its territory are usually less defensive then one in its territory.
 

cacoseraph

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Ando55

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I saw this a long time back and recorded it! I remember he found a VERY VERY defensive tarantula that attacked a twig he inserted inside a hole. It threw a huge threat and struck the twig hard, I wonder what it is as Rick C. West said he never seen any Tarantula like it and it's only native to Roraima.
 

Rain_Flower

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Wow I'm amazed how many people were actually watching the same show last night... I watched it too, ha. Very good show, I want to visit that place. Maybe go on a T hunt. :D
 

Derrick

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I have seen the documentary a couple times now and it was just as entertaining the 2nd time. I am also curious about the un-identified Tarantula species suspected to be only from Roraima. If the female scientist that was with the expedition, (A microbiologist whom I cant remember the name of), gets backing from NASA to research very primitive microbial life of caves then maybe someone out there will recognize the importance of the other unknown creatures of Roraima like the Tarantula Rick West couldnt identify.:?
 

pitbulllady

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pitbulllady,
a spider taken out of its territory are usually less defensive then one in its territory.
Rick West specifically said that the species was not aggressive, and gave no particulars as to whether it was aggressive in or out of any particular territory. He picked the spider up right at its burrow, getting no defensive reaction at all, and the only time she did do anything was a couple of half-hearted hair flicks when he put he down and gave her a little shove to get her back into her burrow. I would think that at the burrow entrance, she would have been the most likely to react defensively if she ever was going to at all. Mr. West certainly gave the impression that this specie as a whole is not prone to biting at all, regardless of where it is. Maybe living in such an isolated area, with very few if any large vertebrate predators, these T. apophisis have simply evolved as one of the apex predators, given their size, so they do react defensively once they are adults. Most likely one of their prey is smaller tarantula species, so that might explain why the other tarantula Mr. West encountered was extremely defensive, eagerly biting a stick he put in front of it repeatedly.

pitbulllady
 

Crotalus

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Rick West specifically said that the species was not aggressive, and gave no particulars as to whether it was aggressive in or out of any particular territory. He picked the spider up right at its burrow, getting no defensive reaction at all, and the only time she did do anything was a couple of half-hearted hair flicks when he put he down and gave her a little shove to get her back into her burrow. I would think that at the burrow entrance, she would have been the most likely to react defensively if she ever was going to at all. Mr. West certainly gave the impression that this specie as a whole is not prone to biting at all, regardless of where it is. Maybe living in such an isolated area, with very few if any large vertebrate predators, these T. apophisis have simply evolved as one of the apex predators, given their size, so they do react defensively once they are adults. Most likely one of their prey is smaller tarantula species, so that might explain why the other tarantula Mr. West encountered was extremely defensive, eagerly biting a stick he put in front of it repeatedly.

pitbulllady
Its was my own comment on why some spiders are very aggressive in their own territory but when picked out of it they are calm. Natural behaviour that can be sad about different animals - dogs for example.
Of course they dont really try to bite, just kick copius amount of hair as that is their no 1 defense weapon. Tarantulas mostly bluff to strike and slap you with the legs. A few catch on to a stick for example and really have a go at it but most bluff and retreat.
For a tarantula species to prey upon another tarantula species would mean they do not eat much over a year - only when males are on the walk to find a mate. I dont think apophysis prey on tarantula species, they eat anything in the right size that are close by the burrow.
 

chupie

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bird on show

Perhaps the flying monster that ate the villagers children was a giant petrel. Giant petrels catch and eat seals and penguins.
 

syndicate

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watched most of this last nite.very cool show!i wish they showed more footage of that undescribed tarantula species they found
 
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