''Xenesthis'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

tarantulas 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 ...

that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1891. it contains four species, found in Colombia and

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

, though it was previously considered to be found in

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

Diagnosis

There distinguishing factor is based on the

scopulae Scopulae, or scopula pads, are dense tufts of hair at the end of a spiders's legs. They are found mostly on hunting spiders, especially Lycosidae and Salticidae. Scopulae consist of microscopic hairs, known as setae, which are each covered in even ...

of the metatarsus 4 is covering nearly the entire length and circumference of the segment. At the time it was the only known

New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. ...

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 m ...

genus to own this trait, which is not the case today.

Species

it contains 4 species according to the world spider catalog: * '' Xenesthis colombiana'' Simon, 1891 ( Type) - Colombia * '' Xenesthis immanis'' (Ausserer, 1875) - Colombia and

* '' Xenesthis intermedia'' Schiapelli & Gerschman, 1945 -

* '' Xenesthis monstrosa'' Pocock, 1903 - Colombia

Transferred to other genera

* ''Xenesthis cubana'' Franganillo, 1930 → '' Citharacanthus spinicrus''

References

Theraphosidae genera Spiders of Central America Spiders of South America Theraphosidae {{Theraphosidae-stub

Diagnosis

Species

Transferred to other genera

See also

References