''Aphonopelma chamberlini'', also known as the Paso Robles rusty red tarantula, is regarded by some sources as a

tarantula Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. , 1,040 species have been identified, with 156 genera. The term "tarantula" is usually used to describe members of the family Theraphosidae, although ...

species endemic to California, and by others as

synonymous A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

with ''

Aphonopelma iodius ''Aphonopelma iodius'' is a species of spider in the tarantula family Theraphosidae, found in United States (California, Nevada, Arizona and Utah). A 1997 paper combined it with three other previously described species (''A. angusi'', ''A.&n ...

''. Described in 1995, it is known from the vicinity of

Paso Robles, California Paso Robles ( ), officially El Paso de Robles (Spanish for "The Pass of Oaks"), is a city in San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Located on the Salinas River approximately north of San Luis Obispo, the city is known for its hot ...

. Females are around long, and the body color is a uniform reddish brown with light rusty red

setae In biology, setae (singular seta ; from the Latin word for "bristle") are any of a number of different bristle- or hair-like structures on living organisms. Animal setae Protostomes Annelid setae are stiff bristles present on the body. Th ...

(hairs) on the legs. The species name honors arachnologist

Ralph Vary Chamberlin Ralph Vary Chamberlin (January 3, 1879October 31, 1967) was an American biologist, ethnographer, and historian from Salt Lake City, Utah. He was a faculty member of the University of Utah for over 25 years, where he helped establish the School of ...

, who was responsible for naming a large number of ''

Aphonopelma ''Aphonopelma'' is a genus of tarantulas native to the Americas. It includes nearly all the North American tarantula species north of Mexico and a considerable percentage of the tarantula species that range into Central America. Most are fairly ...

'' species. A 2013 study suggested ''A. chamberlini'' was synonymous with ''Aphonopelma brunnius'', which has since been included in ''Aphonopelma iodius''.

References

chamberlini Endemic fauna of California Spiders of the United States Spiders described in 1995 Fauna without expected TNC conservation status {{Theraphosidae-stub