Pea crabs are tiny crabs, almost always less than half an inch (1 cm) wide. As adults they live associated with other marine animals such as bivalve mollusks (clams) and tubeworms. The California Bay pea crab inhabits the tubes and burrows of polychaete worms (marine annelid worms of the class Polychaeta that bear bristles and have paired appendages). Other species of pea crab, such as Pinnotheres pisum, are found in mussel and cockle shells in European coastal waters, while females of Pinnotheres ostreum, also known as the oyster crab, are found in oysters of the Atlantic coastal waters of North America and are abundant in oysters of Chesapeake Bay. (The males are usually free-swimming.) Pea crabs live in other animal hosts but do not derive nourishment from their hosts’ tissues; animals with this arrangement are not parasites but are known as commensal indwellers.

The pea crabs appear to do no serious physical harm or damage to their hosts, although they do not seem to do any particular good either. Unlike other crabs, which are protected by a hard exoskeleton made from calcium carbonate, pea crabs have a soft body. They rely on their hosts to provide them with shelter and protection. The pea crabs intercept some of the food sieved from the water by the gills of the host animal. They feed on small prey items such as planktonic animals and carrion scraps that find their way near to or into the host’s tube or shell. Pea crabs sometimes live in pairs, although the male may move around between hosts. The female will carry the fertilized eggs under her abdomen until they hatch.

At this point a planktonic larva swims away from the tube or burrow and goes through several stages, feeding on other planktonic organisms until it is sufficiently developed to settle on the seabed and seek out a new invertebrate host. A study of the morphology (form and structure) of animals can tell us a lot about their lifestyles and adaptations to their favorite habitats. The strange shape of the California Bay pea crab, being much wider than it is long, is a perfect adaptation to life in a tube; It can move up and down its home by walking sideways, particularly aided by the well-developed next to last pair of walking legs. Pea crabs of the species Pinnotheres pisum have much more rounded bodies, reflecting the fact that they do not live in such ~ confined spaces. The relative softness of the California Bay pea crab’s shell contributes to its overall flexibility and helps when it moves around in confined spaces. In some pea crab species there is a marked difference in the shape of the claws in the males and females, which probably assists the male in holding the female during mating.

Vulnerability

The viability of pea crabs depends on the availability of hosts as well as the presence of other essentials such as food and reproductive mates. Many of the worm species that the California Bay pea crab relies on are subjected to population fluctuations. These events in turnn affect the population of the pea crabs that live with them Records of animals as small as pea crabs are often lacking, so it is difficult to establish a broad view of their distribution and abundance. The California Bay pea crab is listed as Endangered by the IUCN, and the extent of threats to the animal will be resolved only as a result of more scientific research.

The California Bay pea crab
is less than 0.20 in (5 mm) wide about a quarter of the size of the tiny California fiddler crab (below), which is distinguished by its large claw (in the male), used to signal to mates. The fiddler crab lives in burrows in sandy mud in bays and estuaries from Southern California to Baja California. Its future is also uncertain as a result of encroachment on its habitat by human construction.

California Bay pea crab Parapinnixa affinis

• Size: Minute crabs, reaching about 0.1 in (2.5 mm) long and 0.2 in (5 mm) wide
• Family: Pinnotheridae
• Form: Minute, wide crabs with very well­ developed 4th pair of walking legs quite out of proportion to the rest of their body
• Related endangered species: None
• World population: Unknown
• Diet: Small marine animals and carrion
• Distribution: Western seaboard of U.S., especially coast of California
• Habitat: The tubes and burrows of marine polychaete worms, including Terebella californica and Amphitrite species
• Breeding: Male fertilizes eggs that are carried on female’s abdomen. Here they are guarded, oxygenated, and protected until they hatch into free-swimming planktonic larvae. They pass through several stages, feeding on plankton before they metamorphose, settle on the seabed, and seek out a new suitable host worm

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Patchy Distribution

The distribution of the giant Gippsland earthworm was previously much wider than it is today. When European settlers arrived in the 18th century, they transformed large areas of native forest into pasture for the dairy industry. The disturbances associated with this proved very damaging to the worms. Today giant Gippsland earthworms tend to be restricted to steep hillsides and valleys where the soils cannot be plowed. Any activities that affect the moisture content and drainage of the soil can also be bad news for the worms. Building roads and dams, trenching, and laying cables are all damaging activities. Natural seasonal fluctuations of moisture content govern the normal movement of the worms within the soil. Recent surveys of southern and western Gippsland have shown that the giant earthworm is restricted to about 40 square miles (100 sq. km) of land in an area bounded approximately by Loch, Korumburra, and Warragul. Much of this land is unsuitable, and the giant earthworm’s distribution is very patchy. The population density of the adult worms within the acceptable areas is usually low, about two individuals per 35 cubic feet (two per cubic meter). The worms are mostly found in blue-gray clay soils on flats by the banks of streams or along ditches and watercourses where the slopes face a southwesterly direction. Like all earthworms, the giant Gippsland worms have beneficial effects on the quality of the soil in which they live, contributing to an increase in its organic content and assisting aeration and increasing fertility. The giant Gippsland earthworm has become part of the folklore of southern Gippsland, and many landowners speak with pride about its presence on their properties.

Conservation

Conserving the giant Gippsland earthworm is difficult. Retaining natural vegetation alongside streams as well as on steep slopes and in valleys and keeping out livestock by fencing the remaining earthworm habitats are both thought to be helpful measures. However, such strategies rely heavily on the cooperation of private landowners and farmers who may need help in identifying the parts of their properties that accommodate the giant earthworms. One issue that has recently made this more difficult is the splitting up of larger properties into smaller ones used for small scale farming.

DATA PANEL

• Family: Megascolecidae
• World population: Unknown
• Distribution: Restricted to about 40 square miles (100 sq. km) of land in Gippsland, Victoria, Australia
• Habitat: Burrows in organically rich soils
• Size: Length: 31 in (80 cm); diameter 0.8 in (2 cm)
• Form: Typical segmented worm; a definite head and 300-500 segments each with chateau (bristles); well-developed respiratory and vascular system
• Diet: Plant tissue and organic matter in soil
• Breeding: Worms are hermaphrodite, but 2 individuals are required for fertilization to occur. Mating takes place in spring and early summer. Individuals lay a single amber-colored egg capsule containing 1 embryo, which takes about 12 months to hatch. The earthworms are presumed to reach adulthood about 4.5 years after hatching. Adults may be long-lived.

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Honey bees probably originated in tropical Africa and spread from South Africa to northern Europe and the Usa, and eastwards into India and China. They are now found worldwide except at the poles. A honey bee hive is an extraordinary places. Tens of thousands of bees work together for the greater good of their colony-building and maintaining the hive, finding food, fending off predators, feeding and rising the young. There is a strict caste system in force inside the hive. A queen (a fertile female) lays eggs; a few hundred drones (males) exist to mate with her; and many thousands of workers (sterile females) do the daily tasks. Tireless producers of honey and first-class pollinators of many crops, honey bees are one of the most beneficial of all insects.

Eggs by the Thousands

Shortly after metamorphosing from a pupa into a bee, the queen takes her first and only nuptial flight. She mates in mid-air with one or more drones, which then die. String their sperm inside her; she transforms into an eggs-laying machine, producing up to 2000 eggs a day during the warmer months. Each egg is stored in a honeycomb cell at the centre of the hive. If the queen releases sperm onto the eggs, it hatches into a worker. if she doesnt it develops into a drone. After a few days, a tiny worm-like larva crawls from the egg and is fed by workers. The larva grow and develops within the cell, becoming a pupa, before emerging as an adult bee. The workers choose a few larvae to become queens, feeding them on a protein-rich subtance called royal jelly, which they produce in glands in their heads. Potential queens may replace the old queen or fly away to start new colonies.

Part of bodies

• Five eyes-three small ones on top and large compound eye on each side of the head help the bee to distinguish colours
• Antennae are slender, jointed feelers on the front of the head which have tiny sense organs for smell
• Each front leg has a notched structure which it uses to clean dirt from its antennae
• Pollen is carried in areas called baskets on the workers hindlegs
• Four wings enable the bee to fly forwards, backwards, sideways or to simply hover

Statistics

• status – common
• social unit – colony
• length – 0.3-2.7 cm
• weight – 0.1-0.2 g
• breeding season – spring
• incubation period – 21-24 days
• number of eggs – up to 2,000 eggs a day
• breeding interval – continuous
• diet – nectar, honey and pollen
• lifespan – queen: 5 years; drones: 4-6 weeks; workers: 6 weeks

Myth or fact
Honey bees have developed an intriguing form of communication. When a foraging worker finds a new source of nectar and pollen, it returns to the hive and dances in front of other workers. The bees movements seem to tell the other bees in which direction the food is located as well as its distance from the hive. It also produces a scent which scientists believe may provide further information, including the type of flower.

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Blue-ringed octopuses live in Indo-Pacific waters from southren Japan to Australia in depths of up to 30m (100 ft). They are usually found on reefs, in crevices and rock pools, and occasionally on sandy seabeds. A tiny, golf ball-sized killer lurks quietly in the tidal pools and coral reefs of the Pacfic and Indian Oceans. When threatened its vivid blue rings ‘glow’ on its body. this warning that animals or people ignore at their peril – the blue – ringed octopus is so venomous, its bite can kill a person in minutes. What’s more thereis no known anti-venom. Luckily the blue-ringed octopus is not aggressive, attacking only when provoked. There are four species, all lethal.

Loved to death

Its miniature size and beautiful markings have put the blue-ringed octopus on the wish list of many home aquarium owners. This has led to widespread hunting, which is now threatening previously stable populations. When wild animals are caught for the pet trade many more die in transit than actually reach the countries where they are sold. This is certainly true of the blue-ringed octopus. Coupled with the damage done by hunters to the coral reefs many blue-ringed octopuses inhabit, there is now some concern for the future of these animals.

Part of bodies

• Large eyes gives excellent colour vision
• Blue, iridescent rings warn other animals that the octopus is poisonous
• Eight tentacles each equipped with a double row of suction pads for gripping rocks and prey

Statistics

• status – locally common
• length – 15-20 cm (6-8in) including tentacles
• wieght – 25-50 g (1-2 oz)
• breeding season – all year round
• number of eggs – up to 30
• diet – small fish, crabs, prawns and other invertebrates
• lifespan – males: up to 2 years ; female : 6 months

Myth or Fact ?
To the Yanyuwa Aborigines of northern Australia, the blue-ringed octopus is sacred. They consider it to be the earthly from of the Pleiades star constellation which, they believe, controls the health and fertility of the environment. To them the octopus ‘s glowing blue rings are the stars themselves glittering on its body.

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Controlling Interest
Conservationists are looking for ways of controlling the crown of thorns sea star. Million have been culled, but to limited effect. Erecting underwater fences around small areas of reef works well in keeping out the adult sea stars, but such a project is unlikely to be practicable on a large scale and would not keep out the animals larvae. One possibility is the use of biological control methods, such as the introduction of predators, but this risks disturbing an area,s ecological balance.

Part of Bodies

• Skin is reinforced with tough particles made up of magnesium calcite
• Number of arms varies-may be as many as 23
• Poisonous spines, up to 3 cm long, break off and lodge in the skin if the animal is handled
• Central disc contains the stomach, digestive organs and sex organs. The anus is placed at the top of the body

Statistics

• status – locally common
• diameter – up to 40cm
• sexual maturity – 2 years
• breeding season – summer months
• number of eggs – up to 60 million in season
• diet – corals; also algae and crustaceans
• lifespan – up to 7 years

Myth of fact
Lots of people think that sea stars have eyes. What they actually have are eyespots at the tip of each arm which act as light sensors. These sensors contain a red pigment which changes when light is present and may enable the sea star to get its bearings.

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The man of war is most commonly found in the tropical and subtropical regions of the Pacific and Indian oceans and the Atlantic Gulf Stream, but is seen in warm seas worldwide, including the Mediterranean. Strong winds often drive it inshore. The man of war is feared for its powerful sting. Among the simplest of animal form, it has no brain and reacts mechanically to stimuli. Although the man of war looks like one animal, its actually a colony made up of many interrelated animals (polyps) which each perform different tasks. It has tentacles up to 60 m long and a float said to resemble the hat worn by medieval Portuguese sailors, hence another common name, Portuguese man of war.

Two in One

Each man of war exists in two distinct stages: as a floating colony of polyps (tubular structures adapted for special tasks) and as a tiny, free swimming medusa, which looks like a jellyfish. The medusa is the sexually mature stage of the animal and produces both eggs and sperm. It develops like a tiny bud on one of the reproductive polyps which hang off the float before breaking free to become a floating larva (fertilized egg). It stars as a single polyp, but produces more polyps, eventually becoming a complete colony.

Part of bodies

• Stingers – stinging polyps each have a long tentacle, inside which are the nematocysts, or stinging cells.
• Polyp power digestive polyps draw prey into their digestive cavities. Two other types of polyp have the task of either trapping and killing prey, or reproducing.
• The gas filled float, translucent and tinted blue, pink or violet, acts as a sail
• Crest can either be left-sided or right-sided
• Float extends up to 15 cm above water and grows to 9-30cm in length

Statistics

• status – common
• length – float: 30 cm, tentacles: 10-50 m
• sexual maturity – when medusa breaks free
• breeding season – year round
• number of young – numerous
• diet – fish larvea and small fish
• lifespan – a few months

Related species

The man of war belongs to the Cnidaria phylum, which includes corals and sea anemones. It is in the Hydrozoa class which contains thousands of species, including the freshwater hydra. It is commanly associated with jellyfish, but the relationship between them is a fairly distant one.

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Ornithoptera Alexandrae

The females of both species are dark brown, spotted with white and cream. Female bird wings are generally larger than their male counterparts, although their coloration is less spectacular. The butterflies have adapted to forest habitats where occasional flowers provide enough nectar to feed the adults. The males exploit certain tall trees as vantage points and as mating sites. Females move around between patches of rain forest in search of specific vines on which to lay their eggs. Bird wings butterflies have long been favorites with collectors. When all the species were listed by CITES, making it illegal for them to be offered for sale, a lucrative trade in smuggled specimens developed, with single Queen Alexandra’s bird wings fetching more than $500 on the black market. Protection from collecting has done little by itself, however, to improve the butterflies’ prospects, since the numbers actually changing hands are now small.

Statistics:

• Family: Papilionidae
• World population: Unknown
• Distribution: Queen Alexandra’s bird wing: Papua New Guinea. Richmond bird wing: subtropical Queensland and New South Wales, Australia
• Diet: Caterpillars feed on forest vine of
• Breeding: Eggs laid singly on upper side of leaves of host plant; they hatch into caterpillars that feed on plant for about 4 weeks before developing into a chrysalis. Chrysalis hatches into adult butterfly after about 3 weeks
• Habitat: Open woodland and tropical rain forest
• Size: Wingspan: Queen Alexandra’s bird wing: up to 11 in (27.5 cm). Richmond bird wing: less than 6 in (15 cm)
• Form: Large butterflies with 2 pairs of conspicuous wings, the leading pair much longer than the second
• Related endangered species: Obi bird wing butterfly (Ornithoptera aesacus); Rothschild’s bird wing butterfly

Habitat Destruction

A much greater threat comes from the destruction of their habitats and the food plants they live on. Birdwing caterpillars feed selectively on certain species of tropical forest vine belonging to the genus Aristolochia. These vines occur only in rain forest and frequently have a rather patchy distribution, especially where they have suffered from human interference in the form of timber-felling or forest clearing for urban development or farming. Over the past 10 years some important species of the vines have become scarce except in a few national parks, which are not always large enough to guarantee their long-term survival.

The loss of the vines has in turn threatened some of the birdwing species with extinction. The Queen Alexandra’s and Richmond birdwings face particularly severe problems. Both have relatively small distributions that are especially vulnerable to forest clearance and the disappearance of food plants and breeding grounds. Queen Alexandra’s birdwing larvae apparently feed exclusively on a particular species of the vine Aristolochia dielsiana. Although the vine is widely distributed in Papua New Guinea, it is only available in sufficient quantities to support the huge, ravenous Queen Alexandra’s caterpillars in the province of Oro. Only Oro has enough of the volcanic, phosphate-rich soils that the vines need if they are to flourish. Richmond birdwing larvae depend on another vine, A. praevenosa. Their only natural food plant is found in lowland rain forests. However, at higher altitudes-above 2,500 feet (800 m)-on the border ranges of Queensland and New South Wales the Richmond birdwing larvae may also feed on a variant subspecies of A. deltantha. Only when research has figured out all such complexities will biologists fully understand the life cycle of the remarkable birdwing butterflies. Yet such knowledge is necessary if strategies are to be designed to protect them.

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Reproduction

The reproductive lives of southern damselflies are closely connected with the water by which they live. The long, slender abdomen of the male is equipped with a pair of claspers situated near its rear tip. Just in front of the claspers are the openings of the male reproductive organs. When preparing to mate, the male transfers a drop of sperm from the opening by bending his abdomen forward and underneath to touch special receptacles near the front of the abdomen (just behind the last pair of walking legs). He then flies off to find a female to mate with and takes hold of her by the neck using his Jaspers. Mating is then achieved as the male perches holding the female while she bends her abdomen around under his body to touch her tip against his sperm-filled receptacles.

She then takes some sperm into her reproductive tract. After mating, the pair may fly around in the “tandem” position, with the male towing the female; this may often be observed in the spring. The female damselfly then dips the tip of her abdomen in the water to touch a suitable water plant. She makes a small cut with her egg-laying appendage and deposits her eggs in the plant tissue. The eggs hatch into an aquatic larvae known as nymphs. The larvae live in the water and breathe by means of gills carried on three tail projections at the tip of the abdomen. Like adults, the nymphs are carnivores and hunt for aquatic food, small worms, and the larvae of other insects. They have a specially adapted set of mouthparts called the mask. It is normally kept folded under the head, but can be extended with great speed, effectively spearing the victim on the terminal clawlike extensions.

Conflict over Conservation

Because of its rarity the southern damselfly has recently become the subject of government sponsored conservation efforts in Britain. Plans are in progress to allow swiftly flowing trout streams and the well drained land associated with them to deteriorate naturally into habitat that is more suitable for the endangered southern damselfly, namely slower running waters with boggy ground and soft banks. The proposals have given rise to conflict between the trout-fishing lobby and conservationists, but this has only served to highlight the needs of the southern damselfly. It is difficult to convince some people of the need to protect the damselfly, but slow progress is being made.

Southern damselfly – Coenagrion mercuriale

• Family: Coenagrionidae
• World population: Unknown
• Distribution: Southern Britain; northwestern Europe from France and Germany southward to the Mediterranean; North Africa
• Habitat: Slow-running streams and boggy ground
• Size: Length: 0.9-1.2 in (2.4-2.7 cm); wingspan: 1-1.4 in (2.5-3.5 cm)
• Form: Resembles small dragonfly; long, slim, brilliantly colored body; conspicuous eyes; 2 pairs of wings
• Diet: Adults feed on small insects, including mosquitoes; nymphs (larvae) feed on small aquatic animals such as other insect larvae
• Breeding: Males go in search of females in spring. After courtship and copulation eggs laid under water in water plants. Free-living larvae hatch and may feed for many weeks before emerging to molt as adult damselflies
• Related endangered species: Several, including Frey’s damselfly (Coenagrion hylas freyi)

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Hermit beetles live all their lives in decaying oak and lime trees; successive generations may continue to live in the same tree for many years. Since the beetles do not disperse well, isolated populations build up in each tree; and if the trees fail to survive, the beetles may be lost. The threat of collecting is now further reducing the stability of scarab beetle populations. Scarab beetles-members of the family Scarabaeidae display many diverse forms and habits. The family includes dung beetles, the hermit beetle, and the Egyptian sacred scarab beetle. It is thought that the Ancient Egyptians believed that the earth was rotated by a giant scarab beetle in the sky, in the same way that the dung beetle rolls balls of dung. This, at least, is one theory as to why the Egyptians held scarab beetles in such high regard. Scarab beetles have short legs with flattened middle joints, and a number of species are attractively colored in metallic hues. The head has short antennae and is often equipped with spines or other projections. It is known that the scarab exudes a slightly perfumed scent, but the purpose of it is not understood. Relatives of scarab beetles include some of the largest beetle species recorded, including the goliath beetle, which is up to 5.8 inches (15 cm) long, and the distinctive tropical rhinoceros beetle, which is about 4 inches (10 cm) long. However, most scarab beetles reach an average length of only 0.6 to 1 inch (1.5 to 2.5 cm).

Rolling Balls

Many members of the family Scarabaeidae are specialized scavengers. Those that forage for dung (animal droppings) are known as dung beetles or “tumblebugs” after the way in which they roll dung balls along the ground and appear to tumble at the same time. (Some beetles just drag the dung pellets along the ground.) Typical dung beetle behavior involves finding a dung pile, removing a portion of it from the main mass, and rolling this portion into a ball that they roll along the ground. The dung ball is normally much larger than the beetle itself. A beetle measuring about 1 inch (2.5 cm) in length may roll a ball as big as about 4 inches (10 cm) in diameter. It does this while moving backward: It uses its front legs to walk on the ground while its hind legs press on the ball. The task of moving the ball may be shared between individual beetles of the same species, regardless of their sex. The dung ball is stored in a hole excavated for this purpose, and the beetles return to feed on it. The beetles also store dung in which the females can lay their eggs. The larvae feed inside it, keeping the outer crust intact before emerging as adults. Dung beetles are found on all continents except Antarctica, and the number of species per continent is roughly in proportion to the number of large mammal species present.

Timber-Loving Beetles

Although related to the dung beetles, the hermit beetle is a timber-loving species that is associated with decaying trees (they particularly like hollow trees). Host trees are usually common oaks or small-leaved lime trees, which are widely distributed across western, central, and northern Europe. Recent research using radio transmitters suggests that the beetle populations associated with each tree are more or less self-contained, and there is not much exchange of individuals from one tree to the next; for some reason the beetles do not seem to disperse very freely. Consequently, several generations may live continuously in the same tree. This makes them particularly vulnerable if the trees are cut down or the habitat altered in some way. The hermit beetle larva, or grub, also lives in the decaying wood of the same tree. The grubs of many hermit beetles can generate sounds by rapidly rubbing one part of their bodies against another. The purpose of the sound production, known as stridulation, is unclear. After spending their larval lives feeding on and developing in the rotting wood, the grubs metamorphose into adult beetles.

Endangered

Areas where oak and lime trees have existed for years are the most likely habitats for hermit beetles, but they are becoming more scarce. Many of the trees favored by hermits have a rich fauna of various other beetle species associated with them, several of which are also threatened. The hermit beetle is now believed to be endangered across its European distribution. However, it appears to be secure in southern Sweden, where it is being extensively studied. A recent report indicates that the beetles are now being openly traded by collectors using the Internet and other communications vehicles. This represents a further threat to the stability of the the natural populations of hermit beetles.

DATA PANEL

• Size: Length: 1.4 in (3.6 cm), excluding antennae
• Related endangered species: Ciervo scarab beetle (Aegialia concinna); Giuliani’s dune scarab beetle (Pseudocotalpa giulianii)
• Family: Scarabaeidae
• World population: Unknown
• Form: Beetle with dark-colored body shaped like a narrow shield
• Distribution: Western, central, and northern Europe
• Diet: Decaying timber in mature forest
• Habitat: Decaying trees: oaks and limes
• Breeding: Eggs laid in timber develop into grubs (larvae), which metamorphose into adult beetles

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Intriguing Habits

The red-kneed tarantula has a typical spider form, including a pair of fangs (chelicerae) that it uses to stab prey and inject venom. Pedipalps-small appendages near the mouth-have a number of functions, including handling prey. The spiders have poor vision, but sensory structures on the end of the legs allow them to smell, taste, and feel. The tarantula does not spin a web to catch its food; insects, small amphibians, and sometimes mice are actively hunted at night. The prey is subdued with venom and then flooded with digestive juices. Tarantulas are unable to digest food internally, so the digested “soup” of nutritionally valuable parts of the prey are sucked back by the spider. Males are often eaten by their mates after mating. When mature, a male spider spins a tubular web in which he deposits sperm. He then draws the sperm up into a special receptacle in his pedipalps. When mating is about to start, the male makes courtship signals, which help ensure that the female does not mistake him for prey. He uses tibia) spurs (sharp projections) to grip the female’s fangs while placing sperm in the female’s reproductive tract.

Black Market

Although red-kneed tarantulas are relatively easy to keep, they are not easy to breed in captivity. The females live for a long time, often up to 20 years in captivity, but their reproductive rate tends to be slow. As a result of their popularity with collectors and the tarantula’s vulnerability to habitat change, the species has become seriously threatened. Populations could not sustain the demands of the pet trade, and the wild spiders are now difficult to find. Mexico has prohibited their capture and export, but a black market still exists: Smugglers have been caught trying to take them out of their native countries.

Red-kneed tarantula Euathlus smithi

• Family: Theraphovdae
• World population: Unknown
• Distribution: Central America and Mexico
• Habitat: Scrubland and desert
• Size: Length: up to 2.5 in (6.4 cm); leg span: up to 5 in (12.7 cm)
• Form: Cephalothorax (arachnid with joined head and thorax); opisthosoma (abdomen) with 4 pairs of strikingly patterned legs; claws for gripping. Eight eyes on head allow all-round (but poor) vision. Males have thin body and long legs; mature males have tibia) spurs (sharp projections) on pedipalps (appendages on cephalothorax) to grip female’s fangs during mating
• Diet: Insects; also small animals such as lizards and mice
• Breeding: Female produces up to 700 young a year (often fewer). Eggs wrapped in silk and carried by mother. Spiderlings guarded for several weeks after hatching. Life span of males 7-8 years; females 20-25 years in captivity
• Related endangered species: None

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