Australia's new aquatic tarantulas

Theneil · Feb 14, 2019

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i received them as 3" juveniles (i think they grew at least 1.5" when they molted though) Not sure when they were exported from australia but i would assume that they are descendants due to buying them from a reputable source.

Beggottenson · Feb 14, 2019

Theneil said: ↑

I don't think it can be too terribly rare. I have 3 (Had 4 but sold one) and i can't afford much of the rare stuff. LOL

i bought S. crassipes though, but if i'm not mistaken the two are synonymous (somebody please correct me if i am wrong.)
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I’m still wondering that as well hahaha I believe they are the same not exactly sure, but I’m sad now

Theneil · Feb 14, 2019

Beggottenson said: ↑

I’m still wondering that as well hahaha I believe they are the same not exactly sure, but I’m sad now
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I'm not saying they aren't rare, just that usually i can't afford the stuff that is marked *rare* LOL. The seller does get some pretty crazy stuff, so mayne i just got lucky.

Don't be sad. Be glad. Rare or not you like your T, yes?

EtienneN · Feb 14, 2019

This reminds me of a plot for a Syfy channel Creature movie. But an actual documentary would be amazing.

Beggottenson · Feb 14, 2019

Theneil said: ↑

I'm not saying they aren't rare, just that usually i can't afford the stuff that is marked *rare* LOL. The seller does get some pretty crazy stuff, so mayne i just got lucky.

Don't be sad. Be glad. Rare or not you like your T, yes?
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Hahahahaha hey at least you have it, I love it Hahahahah

Darth Molt · Feb 15, 2019

RezonantVoid said: ↑

You read that right. For a while Australian T's have been some of the most aggressive, potent, and rather bland in the hobby.
Until now.
This was an article from 2015 about a recently discovered species in the Northern Territory of Australia.
https://www.google.com.au/amp/s/amp...ngridas-25000-tarantulas-20150623-ghv2ip.html
I remember seeing this on the news briefly but wasn't into the hobby much then.
A little more recently however, this article came out, with some stunning new pictures of the mystery diving T's

https://www.google.com.au/amp/amp.abc.net.au/article/10430354

So far this species is unnamed, and I seriously think this might be a whole new genus going by their appearance and behaviour.

There is a documentary that includes some info about them in a few days time so I'll have more information then, but wanted to hear what everyone thinks about such an awesome discovery
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Hearing about new species of tarantulas is so cool to me let alone 25,000 wild healthy Ts this is great news that tarantulas are still thriving in the wild...I love it <3

RezonantVoid · Feb 17, 2019

The documentary was interesting. The tarantulas are undoubtedly a new genus, completely red with quite a raised carapace and extremely thick legs, as well as a fuzzy appearance. Now, @Nightstalker47 I thought you'd find this bit interesting. My guess was they stayed underwater for a week or 2, but it appears that they stay submerged for a whopping average of 4 months until the monsoon floods subside, by limiting movement to nearly zero. That has to count as aquatic, or amphibious at the very least

AphonopelmaTX · Feb 17, 2019

RezonantVoid said: ↑

The documentary was interesting. The tarantulas are undoubtedly a new genus, completely red with quite a raised carapace and extremely thick legs, as well as a fuzzy appearance. Now, @Nightstalker47 I thought you'd find this bit interesting. My guess was they stayed underwater for a week or 2, but it appears that they stay submerged for a whopping average of 4 months until the monsoon floods subside, by limiting movement to nearly zero. That has to count as aquatic, or amphibious at the very least
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It is truly remarkable that these tarantulas stay there and wait out the floods. It makes me wonder what is so wrong with the surrounding area that they haven't moved out of the flood plain. The fact they stay submerged underwater for 4 months doesn't make them aquatic and certainly not amphibious. Since you say they limit their movement to nearly zero, it means they have to conserve as much energy as possible in order to survive without eating, drinking, and to live on the minuscule amount of oxygen trapped by hairs around the book lungs. Similar to how other mygales are able to survive at the bottom of swimming pools when they accidentally fall in or how tarantulas survive near freezing temperatures sealed in their burrows during winter without eating or drinking for months.

A truly aquatic spider, such as the diving bell spider (Argyroneta aquatica), lives, eats, mates, lays eggs, etc. under water. These tarantulas from what you say about them so far don't do that so can't be considered an aquatic tarantula.

Did you happen to get the name of this documentary?

RezonantVoid · Feb 17, 2019

AphonopelmaTX said: ↑

It is truly remarkable that these tarantulas stay there and wait out the floods. It makes me wonder what is so wrong with the surrounding area that they haven't moved out of the flood plain. The fact they stay submerged underwater for 4 months doesn't make them aquatic and certainly not amphibious. Since you say they limit their movement to nearly zero, it means they have to conserve as much energy as possible in order to survive without eating, drinking, and to live on the minuscule amount of oxygen trapped by hairs around the book lungs. Similar to how other mygales are able to survive at the bottom of swimming pools when they accidentally fall in or how tarantulas survive near freezing temperatures sealed in their burrows during winter without eating or drinking for months.

A truly aquatic spider, such as the diving bell spider (Argyroneta aquatica), lives, eats, mates, lays eggs, etc. under water. These tarantulas from what you say about them so far don't do that so can't be considered an aquatic tarantula.

Did you happen to get the name of this documentary?
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AphonopelmaTX said: ↑

It is truly remarkable that these tarantulas stay there and wait out the floods. It makes me wonder what is so wrong with the surrounding area that they haven't moved out of the flood plain. The fact they stay submerged underwater for 4 months doesn't make them aquatic and certainly not amphibious. Since you say they limit their movement to nearly zero, it means they have to conserve as much energy as possible in order to survive without eating, drinking, and to live on the minuscule amount of oxygen trapped by hairs around the book lungs. Similar to how other mygales are able to survive at the bottom of swimming pools when they accidentally fall in or how tarantulas survive near freezing temperatures sealed in their burrows during winter without eating or drinking for months.

A truly aquatic spider, such as the diving bell spider (Argyroneta aquatica), lives, eats, mates, lays eggs, etc. under water. These tarantulas from what you say about them so far don't do that so can't be considered an aquatic tarantula.

Did you happen to get the name of this documentary?
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Documentary is called The Magical Land Of Oz, it's about Aussie wildlife. There's an app called ABC iView that it should be viewable.
I think they deliberately stay underwater as it floods because the floods scare out predators, which I think is why there are 25,000 of them in such a small area

Nightstalker47 · Feb 17, 2019

RezonantVoid said: ↑

The documentary was interesting. The tarantulas are undoubtedly a new genus, completely red with quite a raised carapace and extremely thick legs, as well as a fuzzy appearance. Now, @Nightstalker47 I thought you'd find this bit interesting. My guess was they stayed underwater for a week or 2, but it appears that they stay submerged for a whopping average of 4 months until the monsoon floods subside, by limiting movement to nearly zero. That has to count as aquatic, or amphibious at the very least
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Is it anywhere online? I would love to check it out if its available, living a solid four months underwater is undoubtedly super impressive. So they are red, fuzzy, have a raised carapace and unusually thick legs...lol.

Its like their appearance changes with every new photo/video on them, did they look anything like the specimens shown in the articles above? Cant help but wonder if maybe more then one species is being taken for the same spider.

RezonantVoid · Feb 17, 2019

Nightstalker47 said: ↑

Is it anywhere online? I would love to check it out if its available, living a solid four months underwater is undoubtedly super impressive. So they are red, fuzzy, have a raised carapace and unusually thick legs...lol.

Its like their appearance changes with every new photo/video on them, did they look anything like the specimens shown in the articles above? Cant help but wonder if maybe more then one species is being taken for the same spider.
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Their shape was identical aside from the raised carapace which was more easily discernable from the angles shown in the documentary. I have the name of the documentary and where to view it in a comment above. I didn't notice the stripes being as vibrant as the photos though

l4nsky · Feb 17, 2019

AphonopelmaTX said: ↑

The fact they stay submerged underwater for 4 months doesn't make them aquatic and certainly not amphibious. Since you say they limit their movement to nearly zero, it means they have to conserve as much energy as possible in order to survive without eating, drinking, and to live on the minuscule amount of oxygen trapped by hairs around the book lungs.
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Can I be the first to coin the term 'Reverse Aestivation' to describe this behaviour? I don't know of any other animal nor word for the behaviour of said animal that becomes inactive when it's both wet and hot.

RezonantVoid · Feb 17, 2019

It is also important to note that their lifestyle during the 4 months underwater is quite unknown. They do not appear to seal the entrance in an attempt to repel the water, so it is possible they may exit the burrow underwater briefly to catch things like frogs and tadpoles which the floodwaters would be brimming with, and perhaps use the grass stalks all around them to gain access to fresh air. From what I could tell, inactivity over the 4 months is an assumption based on that they just disappear before and reappear after the floods

SonsofArachne · Feb 17, 2019

RezonantVoid said: ↑

Enjoy the Crassipes, they are a beautiful species but you are unlikely to get any other Aussie species unless illegally smuggling them. Our silly import/export laws prevent it
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Call me a cynic, but it probably won't be long before these show up in Europe. Especially since the smugglers know right where to find them.

Nightstalker47 · Feb 17, 2019

RezonantVoid said: ↑

It is also important to note that their lifestyle during the 4 months underwater is quite unknown. They do not appear to seal the entrance in an attempt to repel the water, so it is possible they may exit the burrow underwater briefly to catch things like frogs and tadpoles which the floodwaters would be brimming with, and perhaps use the grass stalks all around them to gain access to fresh air. From what I could tell, inactivity over the 4 months is an assumption based on that they just disappear before and reappear after the floods
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That seems much more likely to me anyway, its commonplace to see exaggerations about the animal kingdom in new documentaries, they do this to sensationalize the public.

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