''Typhochlaena curumim'' is a species of

tarantula Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. , 1,100 species have been identified, with 166 genera. The term "tarantula" is usually used to describe members of the family Theraphosidae, although ...

, that is native to Mata do Pau-Ferro, Areia, in the state of

Paraíba Paraíba ( , ; ) is a states of Brazil, state of Brazil. It is located in the Brazilian Northeast, and it is bordered by Rio Grande do Norte to the north, Ceará to the west, Pernambuco to the south and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Paraíba i ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. It is a member of the subfamily

Aviculariinae The Aviculariinae are a subfamily of spiders in the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas). They can be distinguished from other theraphosids by a number of characters. Their legs have no or few spines on the underside (ventral surface) of the tibial ...

Etymology

The specific name is derived from the Brazilian indigenous

Tupi language Old Tupi, Ancient Tupi or Classical Tupi () is a classical Tupian language which was spoken by the indigenous Tupi people of Brazil, mostly those who inhabited coastal regions in South and Southeast Brazil. In the words of Brazilian tupinol ...

, meaning "child". It refers to the local children that found the type specimens high in a tree in Areia, State of Paraíba, Brazil, during an arachnological expedition.

Characteristics

''Typhochlaena curumim'' is only known from the female. It has a brown cephalothorax and legs, but the abdomen is metallic yellowish-green with a black dorsum with five black stripes extending laterally. It is characterized by the

spermatheca The spermatheca (pronounced : spermathecae ), also called ''receptaculum seminis'' (: ''receptacula seminis''), is an organ of the female reproductive tract in insects, e.g. ants, bees, some molluscs, Oligochaeta worms and certain other in ...

, which is wide at the basal region but thins to a single or bifid spiralled region.

References

Theraphosidae Spiders described in 2012 Spiders of Brazil {{Theraphosidae-stub