Texas Brown Tarantula

Aphonopelma hentzi

Another creepy creature is the Texas Brown Tarantula.  Although they look fearsome, they are really quite docile and even be kept as pets. They have some wicked looking fangs and can bite if harassed but rarely do.  I would guess that a general fear of spiders coupled with the size of this guy is what makes people scared of them.  You can actually pick them up and gently handle them without much problem but watch out for those "hairs" on their abdomen, they can be irritating to your skin and are actually one of the tarantula's defense mechanisms.  Rather than building webs like most spiders, tarantulas live in burrows.  While at a Boy Scout camp in Oklahoma a few years ago, I saw dozens of tarantulas crawling around after they were forced from their burrows by days and days of steady rain.  Next time you see one crossing a trail or a road, let him make it across or stop and watch him for a while.  He won't bother you if you don't bother him.