paloma dwarf

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i thought i would take a trip out today to see if the A. paloma have unplugges their burrows. they usually have their burrows unplugged by a few weeks ago, but with all the rain and cold weather, they have delayed activity. well, looks like they are just starting to become active cause i found a few today.

here are some habitat shots




now, when you first spot the burrows, they dont look like much. typically, people overlook their burrows or think they are a wolf spider. paloma tend to make perfectly round burrows no larger than a dime. the burrow structure is also different from most other spider species.

burrow


size comparison. this burrow is an adult female burrow


me digging up the burrow




the burrows typically go just into the soil at an angle and then widen up then go straight down. sometimes they spiral and other times, they dont. the burrow will go straight down about a foot or so then either cut straight back or double back on itself. it is very easy to lose a burrow if you do not know what to expect. the burrows are no wider than a pen in some places as well. but when all your effort pays off, heres what ya get




here is a size comparison. these are fullgrown adult females!



these are one of my absolute favorite natives. they are much better looking in person as well. they are light silver/gray with an olive green/brown hue over the body and legs. amazing spiders!

-josh

 

actually, i live in phoenix, az. this spider was found just north of phoenix. this species has a very large range through western and central arizona. what part of arizona do you live in??? do you have a photo of the dwarf species you find?


waldo, this species is VERY RARELY offered for sale. i believe it is because most people dont bother with the dwarf species as they lack the impressive size.

-josh

 

ah the whetstone area. your spider could be several differnt things. post a pic and lets see if its something i know. there are a few species that are unnamed down that way.

-josh

 

thank you for the generous comment john. you are a cool cat as well. its nice to finally meet someone who loves the dwarf T's as much as i do.

pinkzebra, the only thing i can tell you about learning where and how to find things is.... do your homework and then put in the field time. ive learned everything i know from just getting out there and doing it.

-josh

 

that looks like the dark phase of paloma. the paloma i have are far northern populations and are olive green/brown with a silver hue to them. the southern populations tend to be more dark smokey gray as your animal is. she is a very nice looking spider. great find! did you find her in flat desert or an alluvial fan with fairly rich granite/sand soil??


ive been wanting to get further down south and get some of the dark paloma. just havnt had the time so far. now is the time to do it as they are just unplugging their burrows. i should go look this weekend.

-josh

 

yep, that is prime paloma habitat. are they abundant there?? tehre are some other dwarf species in your area that area VERY COOL! i can PM you some localities for some cool stuff if your ever in teh mood for some bug hunting

-josh

 

the dragoons are very cool! ive never herped there, but ive always wanted to stop on the way to the chiricahuas. what kinda herps do u collect?? ive done LOTS of herping down there as well as bug hunting. we should get together this summer. the most variability is right down in your neck of the woods. i love it down there!

-josh

 

lookin at the pic of your spider some more, that may be one of the random unnamed dwarfs that live down there. i would have to get a good look at it up close to tell. the urticating patch on your animal looks very large. paloma have very small urticating patches. does your animal flick hairs at all?? also, does your animal do the cryptic walk with the abdomen way up in the air and the chelicera spread?? i am definitely going to have to come check your spider out sometime.

-josh

 

lostriverdoc, i got rid of 2 VERY HI YELLOW blacktails from down south last year. they were amazing! check my photobucket page for pics.

http://s243.photobucket.com/albums/ff288/pascoman81/

the links to the left are my different folders.

my first year in arizona, i was finding schmidti, flagstaff oranges, behlei and i had found hualapai on many occasions during visits before i moved here. i had it pretty good right from the get go. we need to hook up sometime riverdoc

-josh