P. Formosa Hybrid?

[AborealVenom]

I have a Small P. Formosa, (Pandora) she's about 2" inches in diamiter, quite a ferocious little thing and's always out and about in her cage. As she's gained size I've noticed that she has some charicteristics of a P. Ornata. For example she is beginning to show bright yellow "caution" stripes on her femurs, also she has a small band across her abdomon, like the P. Ornata although it apears to be smaller in comparison. Do any other owners notice such markings on thier P. Formosa? Or could I have a Hybrid possibly?

 

[Henry Kane]

Hi. If you're talking about the orangish-pinkish band across the underside of it's abdomen, that's exclusively characteristic of P. regalis.

I would almost guess that you were sold a mis-id'd T before assuming you had a hybrid. Where did you get the T from?

Atrax

 

[invertepet]

It could be ornata, or a 'dark phase' formosa. There are POSSIBLY two color 'morphs' of formosa floating around - one being darker with heavier purple highlights (I posted a pic of one a couple of weeks ago which you can search for), and the other lighter with less contrast overall. You can check Rick West's site for some comparison pics. www.birdspiders.com

Yes, cross-breeds are possible. Try to take a pic and post it so we can check it out.

bill