''Pelinobius'' or the king baboon is a
monotypic genus of east African
tarantulas containing the single species, ''Pelinobius muticus''. It was first described by
Ferdinand Anton Franz Karsch in 1885,
and is found in
Tanzania and
Kenya.
Description
The king baboon spider is rusty brown to orange in color. They live in the
shrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It m ...
s and
grasslands of
east Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:
Due to the historical ...
, often using vegetation as a protective cover for their burrows. They are one of the few tarantulas that use
stridulation as a major defense mechanism in addition to rearing up and striking. They produce the stridulation sound effect by rubbing the
femurs of their first and second pairs of legs.
They are a slow-growing species, but can reach a leg span of up to . They are burrowing spiders with thick back legs used for digging. They generally hunt
beetles
Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...
,
cockroaches, and other spiders, and they will put silk near the entrance to its burrow to detect vibrations of passing prey.
In captivity
They are popular among collectors, but they tend to be highly defensive, lacking
urticating hairs, and are not suitable for beginners. They have very strong
venom, though none are known to be deadly to humans. A bite from a smaller spider will cause sharp pain and localized itchiness for five days.
Adults can be kept in a converted aquarium if given plenty of ventilation and a substrate at least deep. Younger spiders can be kept in small containers, such as pill tubs and waxworm tubs, but will need deeper containers as they grow.
See also
*
List of Theraphosidae species
References
External links
Fauna of East Africa
Monotypic Mygalomorphae genera
Spiders of Africa
Taxa named by Ferdinand Karsch
Theraphosidae
{{Theraphosidae-stub