Chromatopelma

Dominik Alexander
Nov 24, 2025
3 min read

There is only one species in this genus -- the C. cyaneopubescens. This is a hobby staple.

Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens

Common Name: Green Bottle Blue Tarantula

Origin: This species is native to the Paraguaná Peninsula in northern Venezuela, where it inhabits hot, dry coastal scrub and semi-desert areas.

Lifestyle: Green Bottle Blues are terrestrial webbers. In nature they live in shallow burrows at the base of shrubs or rocks and build extensive, messy sheets of silk over the ground and surrounding vegetation. In captivity they’re active webbers that will quickly cover decor, creating a dense web “nest” rather than deep burrows.

Adult Size: Adults typically reach around 4.5–6 in (11–15 cm) legspan, with females being more robust and longer lived than males.

Growth Rate: C. cyaneopubescens is considered a fast-growing New World species. Slings and juveniles put on size quickly with regular feeding and can reach a visible juvenile/subadult size in a relatively short time compared with many other tarantulas.

Temperament: Generally skittish and fast rather than defensive. They prefer to bolt and hide in their webbing when disturbed. Biting is uncommon in well-managed conditions, but they can flick urticating hairs if they feel threatened, so they’re best treated as a display species rather than a handling species.

Color & Appearance: This species is famous for its striking, high-contrast coloration:

Legs: vivid metallic to cobalt blue
Carapace: bright green to teal with a metallic sheen
Abdomen: rich orange to pumpkin color, often with darker striping in juveniles
Webbing: heavy, dense sheets of white silk that highlight the spider’s colors

Species History

Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens (the Green Bottle Blue tarantula) is a New World species with a surprisingly well-documented backstory. First described in 1907 by Norwegian arachnologist Embrik Strand as Eurypelma cyaneopubescens, it was later shuffled into the genus Delopelma in 1939 as taxonomists tried to make sense of a very large, poorly defined group of American tarantulas.

In the 1990s, German arachnologist Günter Schmidt created the new genus Chromatopelma for this species, recognizing that its body proportions, eye arrangement and reproductive anatomy didn’t quite fit the other “catch-all” genera then in use. Today Chromatopelma is considered a monotypic genus – C. cyaneopubescens is the only species in it – and is placed in the family Theraphosidae, subfamily Theraphosinae.

In nature, this tarantula is restricted to the Paraguaná Peninsula in northern Venezuela, where it lives in silk-lined burrows and “hammocks” at the base of shrubs and succulents in hot, coastal desert scrub. Because its range is small and that habitat is affected by overgrazing, land clearing and agricultural chemicals, Venezuelan sources now list the species as nationally endangered, even though it remains common in captivity thanks to widespread captive breeding.

Within the hobby, C. cyaneopubescens has become one of the most sought-after “showpiece” tarantulas, valued for its intense blue legs, metallic green carapace and bright orange abdomen, as well as its fast growth, heavy webbing and hardy nature in captivity.

Natural Habitat

Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens is native to the dry coastal scrub of northern Venezuela, centered on the Paraguaná Peninsula and adjacent patches of the same xeric scrub ecoregion. In the wild it lives in hot, windy desert and semi-desert habitat with sandy or rocky soil, scattered shrubs and low trees rather than dense forest.

These tarantulas build silk-lined burrows and tunnel systems beneath bushes, grass clumps and tree roots, often extending the entrance into a thick, funnel-like web that helps shield them from the harsh sun and trap passing insects. They are typically found at low elevations, where daytime temperatures are high, nights are cooler and humidity remains relatively low compared with rainforest regions elsewhere in Venezuela.

Our Specimen:

Given name: Sophie

Sex: Female

Life stage: Adult