Psalmopoeus is a genus of the family Theraphosidae containing various species of tarantulas. The genus is native to Trinidad and Tobago, Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Guyana, Brazil, Belize, Panama, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. All of these tarantulas are arboreal in nature, Psalmopoeus victori being the first arboreal tarantula of Mexico.
Venom
These species are believed to be relatively venomous, and research in the venom of P. cambridgei shows it to be similar to capsaicin, the molecule causing irritation in chilli peppers.[2] These molecules activate sensory cells to send pain signals to the brain. Genetic engineers are working on blocking the receptors that are activated by these molecules.[2]
Diagnosis
The species of this genus can be distinguished from all others by the lyriform organ in the prolateral maxillae, composed of a singular row of thick hairlike bristles. They also own hairs on the base of the chelicerae, also having short hairs in the retrolateral side of the pedipalp trochanter and femur.[3]
List of species
As of July 2022, the World Spider Catalog accepted the following species:[1]
- Psalmopoeus cambridgei Pocock, 1895 (type species) – Trinidad and Tobago
- Psalmopoeus ecclesiasticus Pocock, 1903 – Colombia and Ecuador
- Psalmopoeus emeraldus Pocock, 1903 – Colombia
- Psalmopoeus irminia Saager, 1994 – Venezuela, Guyana and Brazil
- Psalmopoeus langenbucheri Schmidt, Bullmer & Thierer-Lutz, 2006 – Venezuela
- Psalmopoeus maya Witt, 1996 - Belize
- Psalmopoeus plantaris Pocock, 1903 – Colombia
- Psalmopoeus pulcher Petrunkevitch, 1925 – Panama and Colombia
- Psalmopoeus reduncus (Karsch, 1880) – Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama
- Psalmopoeus victori Mendoza, 2014 – Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras
In synonymy
- Psalmopoeus copanensis Gabriel & Sherwood, 2020 = Psalmopoeus victori
- Psalmopoeus intermedius Chamberlin, 1940 = Psalmopoeus reduncus
- Psalmopoeus petenensis Gabriel & Sherwood, 2020 = Psalmopoeus victori
- Psalmopoeus rufus Petrunkevitch, 1925 = Psalmopoeus pulcher
- Psalmopoeus sandersoni Gabriel & Sherwood, 2020 = Psalmopoeus victori
Nomen dubium
- Psalmopoeus affinis Strand, 1907 - West Indies
References
- ^ a b "Gen. Psalmopoeus Pocock, 1895", World Spider Catalog, Natural History Museum Bern, retrieved 2016-05-21
- ^ a b Anitei, Stefan (2006). Chili Peppers, as Strong as Tarantula Venom. Science.
- ^ Pérez-Miles, Fernando (2020-12-15). New World Tarantulas: Taxonomy, Biogeography and Evolutionary Biology of Theraphosidae. Springer Nature. ISBN 978-3-030-48644-0.
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