Mexico

Aphonopelma  is a genus of New World tarantulas formally established in 1901 by British arachnologist Reginald Pocock, separating these sturdy, ground-dwelling spiders from earlier “catch-all” groups. Native to the southern United States, Mexico, and Central America, Aphonopelma  species have become iconic desert and grassland tarantulas. Throughout the 1900s the group went through several reclassifications and name changes, but in 1991 an international ruling officially fixe

This genus comprises arboreal species that can be found throughout Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil. All of the Avicularia species have pink foot pads. Many species in this genus have been transferred to other genera. Currently, there are 12 accepted Avicularia species. Historically, over 50 species were classified as Avicularia. Fukushima 2017 is a large-scale taxonomy su

The genus Brachypelma  was established in 1891 by French arachnologist Eugène Simon, based on spiders like Mygale emilia  (now Brachypelma emilia ). These large, ground-dwelling tarantulas from Mexico became famous for their calm temperament and striking red or orange markings on the legs, especially species such as Brachypelma smithi  and Brachypelma hamorii . Through the 20th century, the group’s classification was debated. At different times Brachypelma  was treated as a s

Species of this genus are native to Central America and northern South America. All Psalmopoeus is a New World genus of arboreal tarantulas in the family Theraphosidae. These spiders are found from Trinidad & Tobago through Central America into northern South America, including countries such as Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Brazil, Belize, Panama, Costa Rica, Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. All known species are tree-dwelling, and Psalmopoeus victori  was the first arboreal

Tliltocatl  is a relatively new tarantula genus, formally described by Mendoza & Francke during a major revision of the Mexican Brachypelma  group published in 2019 and implemented in 2020. Their work showed that the traditional genus Brachypelma  actually contained two distinct evolutionary lineages based on molecular and morphological data. To keep the groups natural (monophyletic), the “red-rumped” species were separated into the new genus Tliltocatl , while the classic “r

Theraphosinae is the largest subfamily of New World tarantulas, containing roughly half of all known tarantula species and dozens of genera spread across North, Central and South America. These spiders are primarily ground-dwelling and are best known for their urticating hairs, a defensive feature that likely helped drive their evolutionary success. The group’s taxonomic story starts in the early 1800s, when large South American species were described under the genus Therapho