The Poec. of A Different Color..

Drusilla

Arachnopeon
Joined
Nov 13, 2004
Messages
6
I am new here, and would like some help identifying what was supposed to be a p. pederseni and a p. rufilata. I did look through the search feature, but I am really not sure what to type into the search line. The one old thread I found that I thought would be productive ended up being more of a bickering column about mis-labeling than about actually identifying certain spiders. It was also locked, which after four pages of insults was obviously a dandy idea. I have also exhausted all my grand scemes of using the internet for searching. My computer has the most horrific color, so trying to identify through pics has become useless... hence, I defer to the masses.

Ok.. the actual issue.. poec. rufilata.. I have two that dont match what I was told they would look like. Stunning little things I have. Two of them, both about three and a half inches long, but the color is wrong.. ok.. well I think it is wrong. The top of my little ones is the typical hard to identify poec of this size.. the underside, on the other hand, has molted out to be something I wasnt expecting. The main band ( closest to the body.. sorry.. my body parts are a disaster and I call them what they look like ) on the first set of legs are the most stunning deep cobalt blue. GORGEOUS is the only word I can use to properly describe this color.. its brilliant to say the least. I have never seen an adult rufilata, so I have no idea if this is right or not.

My second question ...how can you tell the difference between the yellow banded species of poec? I have a four inch pederseni ( LOL ) who has the most stunning lemon yellow bands.. so much for pederseni.

Anyways, I would appreciate all the help I can get on this. Thanks in advance to all who can be helpful.
 

Pheonixx

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
May 24, 2004
Messages
1,219
this is a total shot in the dark, but by your description and the picture posted above. I'd guess you have a P. metallica. By your description of the "brilliant cobalt blue coloring. the rufilata in the pics shows a lot more yellow than blue. so if you do have a metallica you have one of the rarest and most coveted species in the hobby, if not then you probibaly have a P. rufilata like you said.


You can adjust your monitor colors by right clicking on the desktop and selecting properties. in one of the tabs of the window that pops up you will see some color options. if your color is really messed up you might have a loose monitor cable or a bent pin on your monitor cable, try to jiggle the cabel where it attaches at the back of your computer and see if your monitor's color changes, if it does then the cable is loose or has a bent pin. in case you dont know what the monitor cable looks like look on the back of the computer tower, it is likely the biggest and widest cable attached at the back, unless you have an old printer then it is the second largest. Old printer cables are huge anbd wide also.
 

Bearo

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 12, 2004
Messages
462
I think he would know if he has a P. metallica ;)

You cant say what pokie you have by just looking at the colours..
if you can take a good pic on the ventral (under)side of the legs maby you could get an awnser.. otherwise you can just get bad guessings..
look on the carapace (the "head") and compare with Phalagorns "carapace map" then you should be able to get the group right at least...
 

TheWidowsPeak

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
Joined
Feb 19, 2003
Messages
64
I'm 100% sure you have a rufilata they do have the blue on the first segment of ther legs . as for the other one. maybe its a striata?
 

Bearo

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 12, 2004
Messages
462
johnnyjohnjon said:
I'm 100% sure you have a rufilata they do have the blue on the first segment of ther legs . as for the other one. maybe its a striata?
How can you be 100% shore without even have seen it?
you cant use just the colours with Poecilotheria
 

Pheonixx

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
May 24, 2004
Messages
1,219
Bearo said:
I think he would know if he has a P. metallica ;)
You cant say what pokie you have by just looking at the colours..
if you can take a good pic on the ventral (under)side of the legs maby you could get an awnser.. otherwise you can just get bad guessings..
look on the carapace (the "head") and compare with Phalagorns "carapace map" then you should be able to get the group right at least...

I dont think he would know if it was his first tarantula, or he is new to the hobby. I cant tell one pokie from another except fot the P. regalis. I am no expert but looking at the pics and reading his description thats where it led me to believe he had a P. metallica. Is it so hard to believe?
 

David_F

Arachnoprince
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Joined
Feb 9, 2004
Messages
1,764
Pheonixx said:
I dont think he would know if it was his first tarantula, or he is new to the hobby. I cant tell one pokie from another except fot the P. regalis. I am no expert but looking at the pics and reading his description thats where it led me to believe he had a P. metallica. Is it so hard to believe?

Honestly, yes, it is hard to believe. P. metallica isn't just a species you stumble upon at a herp show. Since the description provided by Drusilla only says that blue is present on the femur that rules out P. metallica.
 

Bearo

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 12, 2004
Messages
462
1. I guess he lives in USA and P. metallica is still kinda new there and cost like 400$ and isnt something you find in some petshop

2. If you are new to the hobby you proberbly dont go and buy 2 kinds of poecilotheria (if you know anything about Ts)

3. If it is a P. metallica why would he say that it just has some blue on the ventral side?
 

TheWidowsPeak

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
Joined
Feb 19, 2003
Messages
64
plain and simple rufilata is the only pokie I know of besides metallica that has the blue on the underside of the legs. so I am 100% sure its rufilata. now as far as the other one. I don't know what it is. and yes you can go by just the colors on pokies, hence the key at the top of this page.
 

Pheonixx

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
May 24, 2004
Messages
1,219
well pet shops do stupid things all the time, if he got it at a herp show then maybe someone mis identified it. I am not arguing that it IS or IS NOT a metallica, just tried to explain why I thought it was one. Like i said before "this is just a stab in the dark" if i was an expert then i would have not had to stab in the dark. people get crazy deals on all kinds of things because other people dont identify it right...
 

Bearo

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
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Jan 12, 2004
Messages
462
johnnyjohnjon said:
and yes you can go by just the colors on pokies, hence the key at the top of this page.
I ment the colors on the dorsal side, you can never ID a pokie with those (100%).
But yes, you can use the first and 4th leg's ventral side to ID a pokie (though i dont recomend comparing with a pic on the web)

If you have a P. pederseni you could see on the femur on the 4th leg, there is a V-shaped dark line.. and on the first leg there are kinda big brushes (in adults at least)
 

Andrew vV

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
May 11, 2003
Messages
325
I'd say you probably have rufilata as well. This is however providing that your specimen is not some kind of genetic mutant or hybrid Poec that co-incidentally has cobalt blue fumurs ventrally. ;P
I think some people are taking the whole "ID'ing by color" thing way too seriously!! Im sure that using color alone to ascertain species for most genera leaves lots of room for inaccuracy, but with Poec's, the combination of coloration and patterns has proved to be very accurate indeed. We havent seen any extreme colour morphs of ANY of the species currently in the hobby, so I'd be surprised to see one pop up now out of nowhere (not that it isnt possible!) Yeah, yeah, I know there is a darker form of P. metallica, but for now almost everybody has blue ones :)
 

Andrew vV

Arachnobaron
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May 11, 2003
Messages
325
Bearo said:
I ment the colors on the dorsal side, you can never ID a pokie with those (100%).
So, you're saying that if you had, say, a 4" P. miranda and subfusca sitting next to each other, you couldnt differentiate them dorsally?
 

Drusilla

Arachnopeon
Joined
Nov 13, 2004
Messages
6
Ok.. here goes.. I will try to cover as many of the new questions that popped up as I can remember..

First and foremost.. hi.. Im Dru.. a FEMALE ( lol ).. these are not my first tarantulas, to the contrary, they are about eighth and tenth in a collection that has gotten bigger than expected.

The color chart that was posted is exceptional and I did try to use that when I found it on a previous thread, but as I said, the color on my computer really stinks. ( Not a loose wire- an old miserable monitor ). But thank you to who reposted it.. it really is a fantastic reference.

I am certain that they arent Metallicas.. so that one can easily be scratched off the list. The dealer that I got them from was famous for mismarking slings, but I truely dont believe that ANYONE is going to be THAT careless with something so precious to the hobby.

The two "rufilatas" are not nearly adult size, and I can imagine that they will continue to have some changing of there color patterns, so maybe I am jumping the gun on trying to find out exactly what they are.. all I know is that they do have a great deal of blue on the undersides.

The mysterious yellow- undersided "pederseni" is an identity question that I am guessing may never be answered, I am just hoping for the best. All I can say is that it doesnt look like any of the other poecs. I have, which would be my color challenged rufilatas, a fairly young regalis, a gorgeous little pederseni girl, and a pair of formosa.. so now we know its NOT one of them.. keep guessing !! :?
 

David Burns

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 18, 2003
Messages
1,681
Let's see, it has yellow startle bars and it's not a regalis, pederseni, rufilata or formosa. That leaves striata, fasciata or ornata. Is there yellow bars on legs IV?
 

Martin H.

Arachnoangel
Old Timer
Joined
Sep 1, 2002
Messages
864
Hi,

johnnyjohnjon said:
and yes you can go by just the colors on pokies, hence the key at the top of this page.
not by the colours, but by the markings/pattern on the underside of leg I and IV!



Andrew vV said:
We havent seen any extreme colour morphs of ANY of the species currently in the hobby,
open your eyes! =;-)



Andrew vV said:
so I'd be surprised to see one pop up now out of nowhere (not that it isnt possible!) Yeah, yeah, I know there is a darker form of P. metallica, but for now almost everybody has blue ones :)
I have seen CB P. ornata with a bluish tint (photos and cast skins). I have seen several unusual (irregular) patterned folios (the markings on the dorsal side of the abdomen) in different Poecilotheria species. There are two different colour morphs of P. metallica in the hobby (even most have the blue ones). See also this dark P. striata: >>click here<<, >>click here<< or >>click here<<

And on the arachnid-pix Søren Rafn wrote (29.10.2003):

--8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<--

I know that at least five other species of Poecilotheria have distinct colour varieties:

P. regalis from the eastern parts of the spread range:
yellow dorsally on the anterior parts instead of the usual white

P. formosa from the north eastern extremes of the spread range:
Very vivid and contrasting black bands. Even in premolt.

P. subfusca: Almost entirely uniform black specimens from the same area
as the usual banded variety. From the same batches?

P. metallica: Almost black specimens from the southern parts of the
spread range.

P. ornata also has some obvious varieties, but I am not aware if they
are regional or interpopulation varieties.

Can anyone else add to this?

Anyway enjoy the picture - I am very curious as to how this dark one is
going to look when adult

--8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<--


nur so... =;-)
Martin
 

Phalagorn

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Sep 27, 2003
Messages
279
Martin H. said:
Hi,

not by the colours, but by the markings/pattern on the underside of leg I and IV!



open your eyes! =;-)



I have seen CB P. ornata with a bluish tint (photos and cast skins). I have seen several unusual (irregular) patterned folios (the markings on the dorsal side of the abdomen) in different Poecilotheria species. There are two different colour morphs of P. metallica in the hobby (even most have the blue ones). See also this dark P. striata: >>click here<<, >>click here<< or >>click here<<

And on the arachnid-pix Søren Rafn wrote (29.10.2003):

--8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<--

I know that at least five other species of Poecilotheria have distinct colour varieties:

P. regalis from the eastern parts of the spread range:
yellow dorsally on the anterior parts instead of the usual white

P. formosa from the north eastern extremes of the spread range:
Very vivid and contrasting black bands. Even in premolt.

P. subfusca: Almost entirely uniform black specimens from the same area
as the usual banded variety. From the same batches?

P. metallica: Almost black specimens from the southern parts of the
spread range.

P. ornata also has some obvious varieties, but I am not aware if they
are regional or interpopulation varieties.

Can anyone else add to this?

Anyway enjoy the picture - I am very curious as to how this dark one is
going to look when adult

--8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<---8<--


nur so... =;-)
Martin
Hi!
Some pics of P. formosa (light form) caught in the same area as P. metallica






Phalagorn - Poecilotheria spp. ©
http://www.zoonen.com/minzoon.asp?oid=22299
 
Last edited:

Andrew vV

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
May 11, 2003
Messages
325
Hi Martin,




Martin H. said:
open your eyes! =;-)
Well, they are open most of the time ;-) Like I stated in my post I was not referring to those freak genetic mishaps (though sometimes they may be a key to evolution of the species) And I am well aware that they exist. A few individuals with different colour saturations/ contrasts doesnt cut it as *COMMON* "colour morphs" in the *hobby* as far as Im concerned. They may very well occur all over India in the wild, but I was speaking strictly about what was COMMON in the hobby, not what is/possibly out there.


Martin H. said:
I have seen CB P. ornata with a bluish tint (photos and cast skins). I have seen several unusual (irregular) patterned folios (the markings on the dorsal side of the abdomen) in different Poecilotheria species. There are two different colour morphs of P. metallica in the hobby (even most have the blue ones). See also this dark P. striata: >>click here<<, >>click here<< or >>click here<<

And on the arachnid-pix Søren Rafn wrote (29.10.2003):

I know that at least five other species of Poecilotheria have distinct colour varieties:

P. regalis from the eastern parts of the spread range:
yellow dorsally on the anterior parts instead of the usual white

P. formosa from the north eastern extremes of the spread range:
Very vivid and contrasting black bands. Even in premolt.

P. subfusca: Almost entirely uniform black specimens from the same area
as the usual banded variety. From the same batches?

P. metallica: Almost black specimens from the southern parts of the
spread range.

P. ornata also has some obvious varieties, but I am not aware if they
are regional or interpopulation varieties.

Can anyone else add to this?

nur so... =;-)
Martin
Again, as it pertains as to what is COMMON in the hobby!! Im sure there are even morphs of other species out there, but I dont see too many pictures of those varieties in the photo thread;-)
 
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