Chilean Rose Tarantula

Grammostola rosea

A calm burrower that flings hairs instead of silk

One of the most popular tarantulas in the pet trade, the Chilean rose is a patient ground-dwelling ambusher. It spins no hunting web: after dark it waits at the mouth of its retreat until prey wanders near, then pounces and pins it down with heavy fangs.

Key figures

Size

Body 5–6 cm, leg span up to 15 cm

Lifespan

Females can live over 20 years

Defence

Kicks barbed urticating hairs off its abdomen with the hind legs

Habitat

Dry scrub and grassland of Chile and Argentina

Diet

Beetles, crickets and other insects, rarely small vertebrates

Venom

Mild, usually no worse than a bee sting for humans

Life cycle

Egg → Spiderling → Adult

Ecological role

A nocturnal ambusher of ground insects, it is in turn hunted by foxes, snakes and spider-hunting wasps.

Did you know

Its signature defence is not a bite but a hair-fling: hind legs comb loose a cloud of barbed hairs that irritate skin and eyes.

Range

Dry scrub of Chile and Argentina

Status

Fairly common; widely kept as a pet

Anatomy

• Abdomen — Its back carries a brush of urticating hairs that are flicked off in clouds as a defence
• Cephalothorax — Head and thorax fused into one plate, with eight sturdy limbs radiating from it
• Eyes — A tight cluster of small simple eyes; vision is poor and hunting relies on vibration
• Fangs — Fold downward like paired blades, delivering mild venom that subdues prey
• Legs — Dense sensory hairs read every tremor travelling through the ground

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