Charisma that is. iders in general have a lot of attention from humans. That is a good thing and a bad thing. Humans often think twice before killing one, but they are captured for exploitation. Tarantulas because of their large size and colorful, furry shape especially have this problem i. Collection of tarantulas as a hobby is reaching dangerous proportions, together with climate change and habitat loss, theatening to endanger the species. They have become part of the multi-billion dollar illegal wildlife trade. Because of their long life, 30 years or more, they are particularly vulnerable. Females breed infrequently and later in their lifespans.
Some endemic species like
Poeciltheria from Sri Lanka and India are already threatened by extinction. The US Fish and Wildlife Service is considering
listing them as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. Not all are collected as pets. 43% are collected as souvenirs
post mortem. The Internet makes illegal trade easier by connecting potential buyers with traders. Shipping is less of a problem since babies can be shipped internationally with ease. A German man in 2010 packaged hundreds of baby tarantulas in multi-colored straws and sent them by USPS. In 2021 a couple in Columbia was detained at the airport when 230 tarantulas were found in their suitcase.
[photo credit: Getty Images]There are at least 1000 known species of tarantula. Lack of data on the arachnids hampers assessing the impact of illegal trade. Only species listed under CITIES are tracked, which represents only a small fraction #%) of the species in trade. Negative stereotypes and arachnophobia leading to a lack of research funding also make conservation difficult.
Some tarantula hot spots like India, Central and South America are attempting to control the illegal trade. Given the ease of international shipment and the proliferation of trade in the insects, worldwide regulation is unlikely. Captive breeding may be an answer to saving the spiders from extinction and meeting the demand for specimens provided a legitimate monitoring and tracking system is in place.
Mexico has successfully created a legal captive tarantula breeding program. Breeders are worried that captive breeding cannot keep pace with demand. The genus
Brachypelma contains several colorful Mexican tarantulas popular in the commercial trade. Spiders may creep you out at first, but given a dose of education on how valuable they are to an ecosystem by providing insect control, and as food for larger animals, you quickly get over your aversion...or compulsion as the case may be.
