Who am i ?

[martin hudson]

Thanks Stuart,the links are very good, alot better than i am im afraid, i have looked at the spermatheca on the pici's & on my exo but cant get a close enough image to be shaw,.So i think i will now call her a M,velvetosoma,
Once again Stuart thanks for your help

HI! Deborah,yes she does look very smart now,thank you she has a L.S. of about 8'' & struts around her enclosure with great, grace & confidence, she definitely knows her size, & is afraid of nothing.

[martin hudson]

May I ask how big she is? (sorry if you have said and I missed it). She looks very smart now she is all molted

Sorry Deborah, the post above should have been on this post (if you know what i mean)

[Stanley A. Schultz]

I know what i bought it as & i know what iv been told it is!!!
what do you think it is ? ...

It's one of the Theraphosa, but I'm not well versed enough in distinguishing the individual species. If it makes you itch like bloody H*** even as you walk into the room, it could be T. apophysis. Whatever it is, it's going to want JUST A LOT to eat!

Enjoy your 8-legged eating machine!

[stuart longhorn]

Hi, Sorry Stan, But i disagree.

Can you please tell me stan what makes it absolutely Theraphosa for you? (sorry i misspelt the generic name in a previous post). I would say im about 99% certain that its M.velvetosoma, but i never like to say absolutes unless i look at important taxonomic features under a microscope / run genetic analyses - and then sometimes im still not willing to commit to absolutes.

For a start, the carapace is the wrong shape for any of the 2/3 Theraphosa species, i've kept them all, and seen/kept all the Megaphobema species, and have a similar sized live adult female M.velvetosoma right now in my collection.

OK, Martin - this is unusual for me, but as im particularly interested in Megaphobema, if you would be willing to send the moult to me, i'd be willing to put it under a microscope and look at the important characteristics to identify it for you. If you are interested, send me a pm, and i'll give you my postal address and email. Else bring the moult to the BTS lectures or show next year, but those seem far off to me.

Whatever, Stan is totally right to further point out caution with the ichy hairs - if it has these it absolutely confirms its not a Hysterocrates sp - which as with other africans lack urticating hairs.

p.s Stan, totally love the various editions of the tarantula keepers guide, i recommend them often!

s

[Ray Gabriel]

Hi All

I agree with Stuart

I to have kept and seen all the Megaphobema species, this is M. velvetosoma, you can tell by the elongate carapace, and the deeper radiating sulci, the legs are to narrow to be Theraphosa and you can almost see the metatarsal stripe on legs 1 and 2.

Any more of these for sale at Hysterocrates prices?

When she dies I have a nice jar in the collection for her................. hint hint LOL

Ray

[martin hudson]

HI!, Ray,yes M, velvetosoma, is the 'sp' that i am going with,untill told any different! but all will be revealed soon as Stuart has its moult,& is gona, work his magic on it,so the odd's are good for M, velvetosoma.

I wish i could get some more at the price that i got her for,but i fear it was a one of!

As for ending up in a specimen jar! well i truly hope that she will live on for many years to come!,but if anything was to happen to her then i would be happy for her to go to you,& would freeze her untill i could get her to you,.
Thanks for your interest, Martin.

[stuart longhorn]

Hi Martin, etc. Got the moult on the weekend, and took it upto Oxford museum and with the aid of a microscope, examined it for proper taxonomic characters. I wasn't alone in doing this, i had an accomplice who knows more than plenty about neotropical tarantulas. I wonder if he will admit his role.

Ok. The jury has decided. drum roll....

Yup, Megaphobema velvetosoma.

No doubt.

Spermathecae, low wide with deep outer margin and internal deep ridges.
Metatarsal scopulae, I and II complete, III about 1/3rd, IV without scopulae
No apparent stridulating organ on coxa or trochanter of legI
Femur IV with retrolateral scopulae
and another just for kicks...
Prolateral face of both Tibia and Metatarsus of legIV highly spinulose.
and perhaps
Carapace longer than broad, moderate caput.

->which all firmly place it in Megaphobema. Only one that matches is M.velvetosoma. I would have liked it to be M.teceae, but
it lacks the very notable hump on the carapace.

Here is the spermathecae of your moult under a microscope

https://picasaweb.google.com/112485960936211277712/MegaphobemaVelvetosomaIdentification#5664516577845536674

Here is the drawing of the real Megaphobema velvetosma female holotype spermathecae by Schmidt 1995

https://picasaweb.google.com/112485960936211277712/MegaphobemaVelvetosomaIdentification#5664518916611791282

Here is a picture of your moult next to my own adult female Megaphobema velvetosoma which was recently imported

https://picasaweb.google.com/112485960936211277712/MegaphobemaVelvetosomaIdentification#5664516855207297330

Here is my female M.velvetosoma doing here typical abdomen raised, backlegs raised and ready to again cover me with urticating hairs because i disturbed so much her today here to take these pictures...

https://picasaweb.google.com/112485960936211277712/MegaphobemaVelvetosomaIdentification#5664516834072063634

The full bill for these identification services is in the return mail to you, but as UK postal service is terrible, its very unlikely to turn up,, so dont expect a bill to arrive. [ps im joking, there is not bill for this!]. If you want the skin back, let me know. I broke one of
the legIV from it to examine the retrolateral face, but its otherwise perfectly intact.

[martin hudson]

HI, Stuart, thank you very much for your invaluable work on the moult,& for putting the matter to rest for once & for'all ,
(& i'm glad that there will be no bill,) i will not be needing the moult back,thanks, so do as you will with it!
Not sure why, but the links to the pictures will not work, witch is a real shame as a good look at them would have topped the whole thing of for me,.
That aside,you have done a fantastic job,& have my gratitude,thanks again Stuart.

[stuart longhorn]

Hi... ok, i now found a 'visibility' setting to alter on the picasa website, so now those links should be fully visible to anyone anyway. Sorry. Hopefully job done, and satisfied customer!

If not, they should be visible here to you.

https://plus.google.com/112485960936211277712/photos

[martin hudson]

Yup! that done it.

[James Box]

nice to see the mystery solved and my hunch vindicated LOL!

also, nice spider, Stuart...i do like these Megaphwatsits