The Chaco golden knee tarantula is among the most docile of the world’s approximately 900 tarantula species, making it a popular ambassador for arachnids that many people fear. Native to Paraguay and Argentina’s dry Chaco scrubland, this large, slow-moving spider spends its nights hunting insects, small lizards, and frogs while spending its days in a shallow burrow. Female tarantulas are extraordinarily long-lived — some individuals surpass 30 years — while males typically die within a year of reaching sexual maturity.
About the Tarantula
Grammostola pulchripes
Advertisement
⚡ Speed Comparison
📸 Photo Gallery
💡 Fun Facts
01
Female Grammostola tarantulas can live over 30 years, making them among the longest-lived invertebrates kept in captivity, while males rarely survive past 7 years.
02
Tarantulas do not produce venomous webs — they use silk solely for lining burrows, creating trip-line alarms, and building egg sacs, not for trapping prey.
03
When threatened, many New World tarantulas rub their abdomen with their hind legs to release clouds of barbed urticating hairs that embed in eyes and skin of attackers.
04
Tarantulas breathe through book lungs — stacked lamellae in the abdomen that function like an accordion, passing air over blood-rich tissues — not through spiracles like most insects.
05
A tarantula's entire nervous system is compressed into a ganglion in the cephalothorax, yet they exhibit learning, memory, and individual personality differences in captivity studies.
📍 Where to Find This Animal
Habitat Types:
Dry Grassland, Chaco Region
🛒 Tarantula Related Gear
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Join the Conversation
Share your thoughts about the Tarantula