Biology:Aphonopelma johnnycashi

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Short description: Species of spider

Aphonopelma johnnycashi
Aphonopelma johnnycashi female.jpg
Female
Aphonopelma johnnycashi male.jpg
Male
Scientific classification edit
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Mygalomorphae
Family: Theraphosidae
Genus: Aphonopelma
Species:
A. johnnycashi
Binomial name
Aphonopelma johnnycashi
Hamilton, 2016[1]

Aphonopelma johnnycashi is a species of tarantula (family Theraphosidae).[2] It was found in 2015 near Folsom Prison in California and named after Johnny Cash, whose song "Folsom Prison Blues" made the prison famous. Mature males are generally black, and the country music singer was also known as "The Man in Black".[1]

Natural history

This spider can be up to 6 inches (15 cm) long, the male of the species is black and the female is a dark brown. Like most North American tarantulas, they are relatively harmless to humans, unlikely to bite and with venom only mildly irritating.[3]

The new categorization of this spider is part of an effort to more carefully catalog American tarantula species. For decades there has been a suspicion that there are more species than identified, but that they are similar enough to be overlooked. The new effort has broken them down according to behavior and observable traits, though there has not been genetic testing done to truly ascertain where the species lines are drawn.[4]

References

Wikidata ☰ Q22670080 entry