Tarantula!

Tarantula!

Introduction What's huge and hairy, and has fangs that can kill? It's the biggest spider in the world-the tarantula!

Where Tarantulas Live Tarantulas live in warm places around the world. Many live in forests, and others live in deserts. More than fifty kinds of tarantulas live in the United States. Some tarantulas live in holes in the ground. Others live under logs or in trees.

Hard, Hairy Bodies Like insects and other spiders, tarantulas have a hard covering on their body. As they grow, the covering gets too tight and splits down the middle. After a tarantula pushes out of the old skin, its new skin gets hard.

A tarantula is covered with hairs. The hairs sense heat, cold, and things that move. Other hairs near its mouth help a tarantula taste and smell. Stiff hairs with points grow on its stomach and back. A tarantula can sting enemies with these hairs.

The legs of a tarantula have little claws with hairs. The hairs help the tarantula hold on when it climbs. Two little arms near its mouth have sharp parts. The tarantula holds and cuts food with them.