Poecilotheria rajaei sp. nov.

Martin H.

Arachnoangel
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Sep 1, 2002
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How long will it take, that it pops up in the hobby - any bets?

  • Nanayakkara, Ranil P. & Peter J. Kirk, Salindra K. Dayananda, G.A.S.M. Ganehiarachchi, Nilantha Vishvanath, T.G. Tharaka Kusuminda (2012): A new species of tiger spider, genus Poecilotheria, from northern Sri Lanka. BTS Journal. 28(1): 6-15.
 

Tarac

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Oct 6, 2011
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Long time, if ever I think. Pretty sure it's very difficult to legally obtain wildlife from Sri Lanka if not impossible- they were ahead of India on this front if I am not mistaken. Some will probably be poached here and there but not easy to get those on to the market these days due to the known regulations... fruit of the poisoned tree kind of thing. I certainly hope they are being protected and of course it would be very fun to have a new Pokie in the hobby. But I'd rather them stay in situ as long as they are protected. Captive conservation is nice too, we would all like to see examples of every tarantula species being raised in captivity. But the spirit of captive conservation does not condone poaching at all nor over-collecting from the wild as that is counter to the purpose of conserving period. A neat thing to learn of though, thanks for posting!
 

Tarac

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I've been keeping tarantulas for a little more than 15 years, intensely for the last 10 or so.
 

Philth

N.Y.H.C.
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It just so happens I have a female available for $1000. PM me for my paypal address if you want to be the first to own one lol;). To be honest If they are not in Germany already, then some Germans are probably in Sri Lanka collecting them now :rolleyes:

Later, Tom
 

grayzone

Arachnoking
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please tell me youre joking? Or that its just a color variant of an already existing sp. or something along those lines
 

Philth

N.Y.H.C.
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anybody have a link to pics we can all drool over?
Its reported to look and be similar to P. regalis. I'm looking forward to receiving my new BTS Journal.

Later, Tom

EDIT: I was joking about having one. Kinda like selling a P fasciata and calling it a P. hanumavilasumica , most people cant tell them apart, but will drop a ton of $ on one to be the first to have it.
 

billopelma

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To be honest If they are not in Germany already, then some Germans are probably in Sri Lanka collecting them now
Don't count out the Swiss so soon...;'}


Bill
 

BrettG

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$5 says IF it hits the hobby the prices will be insane for a look alike.(like the P.fasciata look alike)**Edit** Beaten to the punch by Tom..........
 

grayzone

Arachnoking
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yeah, thats what i was figuring.
Poecilotheria are definitely among the most beautiful of tarantulas FOR SURE, but personally i tend to only like the "stand out" sp. of Poecilotheria (as well as every other) genera.

P. met
P. sub
P. ornata
P. rufi
P. regalis
P. miranda

are the only ones i truly care for
 

Poxicator

Arachnobaron
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The full article of 10 x A5 pages within the BTS journal provides the full description, location, taxonomical ID with photographs, pictures and tables. And, as the article that appears is the descriptive article and the species is now accepted the sp. and n. are now ommitted from the name of Poecilotheria rajaei. The BNHM also have a copy for their records.

The differences are subtle, its not unlike P. regalis, and even has the white abdominal band.

What really pleases me about this is its the Sri Lankan arachnologists that have discovered the species which is a great indicator of the advancement of science and interest in the study of arachnids in Sri Lanka. As well as the improved safety within the region of North Sri Lanka.

I thoroughly recommend everyone to become a member of BTS and help support its causes. The newly designed journal also contains breeding reports of P. rufilata and P. ornata courtesy of Ray Gabriel. Membership is available to all ages internationally and provides a database of downloadable journals from the last 10 years, and then some!
 

esotericman

Arachnoknight
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Nov 15, 2004
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The new format of the magazine looks GREAT. The animal itself is pretty much greys, so the color hoarders will not be interested. I'm sure they'll hit the price lists in 2 years.
 

Palinda

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Dec 7, 2012
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ill probably spend more than all of you to save one from leaving Sri Lanka...
please don't get caught taking it. It will be posted all across media and tagged you as a smuggler.
trying my best to get a parliament act to completely restrain/ bann entry clearance visa the country, if a person get caught smuggling.
 

Poec54

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Mar 26, 2013
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ill probably spend more than all of you to save one from leaving Sri Lanka...
please don't get caught taking it. It will be posted all across media and tagged you as a smuggler.
trying my best to get a parliament act to completely restrain/ bann entry clearance visa the country, if a person get caught smuggling.
Are they actively protected in the wild, or can villagers clear land, cut down trees, and kill them? I don't see any virtue in them being killed by locals in the wild without consequence, while rallying against someone taking a handful and trying to keep the species alive in captivity. I've read about areas where whole groups of Poecilotheria have been wiped because an area was clear cut. Why aren't those animals relocated, or allowed to be taken into captive breeding programs?
 
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poisoned

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Are they actively protected in the wild, or can villagers clear land, cut down trees, and kill them? I don't see any virtue in them being killed by locals in the wild without consequence, while rallying against someone taking a handful and trying to keep the species alive in captivity. I've about areas where whole groups of Poecilotheria have been wiped because an area was clear cut. Why aren't those animals relocated, or allowed to be taken into captive breeding programs?
Agreed, except villagers are usually not the people who clear cut forests.
 

PEIMike

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Sep 20, 2012
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just watched a video on yahoo.......of course, when i went back to link it, the stories rotated, and can no longer find it.

no more info than what is available here, but it was a vid.
 

Poec54

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Agreed, except villagers are usually not the people who clear cut forests.
If animals are protected, you would think that someone would care enough to relocate/collect them when an area's being cleared. You have this guy ready to tackle anyone at the border and handcuff them for taking a single Poec out of the country, while people can kill dozens at a time when a group of trees are cut down for pastures or farming. Seems like total hypocracy. If someone truly cares about these animals, they'd be putting their efforts into saving the ones that will die when trees are felled. That's a greater population loss by far.
 
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