Ceratogyrus marshalli
{{short description|Species of tarantula}}
{{Speciesbox
| image = Straight Horned Baboon.jpg
| image_caption = Female Straight Horned Baboon (Ceratogyrus marshalli)
| status =
| status_system =
| status_ref =
| taxon = Ceratogyrus marshalli
| authority = (Pocock, 1897)
| synonyms = {{Specieslist |Ceratogyrus dolichocephalus|
| Ceratogyrus cornuatus| }}
}}
Ceratogyrus marshalli, also known as Straight Horned Baboon or Great Horned Baboon Tarantula, is a species of tarantula from the genus Ceratogyrus. It is found in Zimbabwe and Mozambique.{{Cite web|url=https://wsc.nmbe.ch/species/37281/Ceratogyrus_marshalli|title=World spider catalog|last=|first=|date=|website=NMBE - World Spider Catalog|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140904110035/http://www.wsc.nmbe.ch/species/37281/Ceratogyrus_marshalli |archive-date=2014-09-04 |access-date=}} It was first described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1897, as half of the Ceratogyrus genus, they own a impressive horn in the carapace.
Description
Females live from 8 to 10 years, while males only live 3 to 4.{{Cite web |date=2016-01-03 |title=Ceratogyrus marshalli |url=https://www.theraphosidae.be/en/ceratogyrus-marshalli/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171123074122/http://www.theraphosidae.be/en/ceratogyrus-marshalli/ |url-status=usurped |archive-date=November 23, 2017 |access-date=2022-06-20 |website=Theraphosidae |language=en-US}} With a body length of 6 cm and a 15 cm legspan it is a fairly large species of Ceratogyrus.{{Cite web |last= |first= |date= |title=Theraphosidae Ceratogyrus |url=http://www.theraphosidae.be/en/ceratogyrus-marshalli/ |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171123074122/http://www.theraphosidae.be:80/en/ceratogyrus-marshalli/ |archive-date=2017-11-23 |access-date= |website=Theraphosidae}} Their carapace is black with some light brown striping, of course their being their namesake straight black horn. Their opisthosoma is light brown, covered in black spotting, although sometimes a fishbone pattern is apparent. Their legs are a light brown, or grey depending on visible conditions.
Habitat
They can be found in Harare, Zimbabwe, where this section will be referring to. This area is considered to have a subtropical highland climate. The average temperature here is 19°C, with average yearly rainfall of 805mm, since it is found 1500m above sea level, it has a surprisingly stable temperatures.{{Cite web |last=WMO |title=World Weather Information Service |url=https://worldweather.wmo.int/en/city.html?cityId=263 |access-date=2022-06-20 |website=World Weather Information Service |language=EN}}{{Cite web |title="Klimatafel von Harare-Kutsaga (Salisbury) / Simbabwe" Baseline climate means from stations all over the world |url=https://www.dwd.de/DWD/klima/beratung/ak/ak_677750_kt.pdf |access-date=June 19, 2022 |website=DWD}}
Behavior
They are a very defensive spider, as most tarantulas it will first try to flee, if unable it will result in stridulation or a bite. They are burrowing and will make a vertical tunnel leading to a burrow in the end. At daytime they will most likely be in said burrow, and at night she will stay vigilant at the edge of her tunnel.
See also
References
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