Environment and Ecology · EnvEco0217
Spiders and Tarantulas of India
A spider is an arachnid in the order Araneae. It has eight legs, two main body parts, fangs, and silk-producing spinnerets.
Spiders are not insects. Not every spider builds a web. Tarantulas are a type of spider.
India has spiders in forests, fields, wetlands, gardens, and homes. Their shapes and hunting methods vary widely.
Must Know: What Makes a Spider
1. Spider, insect, scorpion, or tarantula?
A spider is an arachnid in the order Araneae. It has eight legs, fangs, and silk-making spinnerets.
An insect belongs to the separate class Insecta. It has six legs, three body regions, and one pair of antennae.
A scorpion is an arachnid in the order Scorpiones. It has eight legs, large pincers, and a segmented tail with a sting.
A tarantula is a spider in the family Theraphosidae. It has the spider body plan, often with a sturdy, hairy body.
The relationship: Spiders and scorpions are arachnids. Insects form a separate class. Tarantulas are one family of spiders.
| Animal | Legs | Main body regions | Antennae | Useful clue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spider | 8 | 2 | No | Fangs and spinnerets |
| Insect | 6 | 3 | Yes | Head, thorax, abdomen |
| Scorpion | 8 | 2 main regions | No | Pincers and stinging tail |
| Tarantula | 8 | 2 | No | A spider with fangs and spinnerets |
2. A spider’s simple body plan
The front section holds the eyes, mouthparts, and legs. The rear section is the abdomen.
Most spiders use fangs to deliver venom to prey. Spinnerets near the abdomen release silk.
Silk can make a web, a shelter, an egg case, or a safety line. A spider does not need a capture web to use silk.
QUICK CHECK 1 OF 4 · TRUE OR FALSE
A tarantula is an insect because it has many legs.
A tarantula is a spider and an arachnid. It has eight legs; insects have six.
Show answer
False. A tarantula is an eight-legged spider, not a six-legged insect.
Good to Know: Silk, Hunting, and Growth
3. Webs are only one hunting method
Some spiders build webs that catch flying insects. Orb-weavers make the familiar round webs.
Other spiders stalk or ambush prey. Jumping spiders leap; wolf spiders hunt on foot.
Many tarantulas wait near a silk-lined retreat. Some live in burrows, while Indian Poecilotheria tarantulas use trees.
4. Moulting lets a spider grow
A spider’s hard outer covering cannot stretch much. It sheds this covering during a moult.
The new covering is soft at first. Leave a moulting spider undisturbed.
Spiders also use silk for egg cases and resting places. Silk does much more than catch prey.
This is a teaching diagram. The effect depends on the spider, prey, and habitat.
Open or download the static infographic (PNG).
QUICK CHECK 2 OF 4 · TRUE OR FALSE
Every spider must build a capture web to catch its food.
Many spiders hunt without a capture web. They still use silk for shelters, egg cases, or safety lines.
Show answer
False. Many spiders hunt without capture webs but still make silk.
Spiders Across India
5. Many habitats, many ways to live
India’s spider checklists change as researchers describe species and revise names. A fixed national count can quickly become outdated.
Forests offer tree hollows and leaf litter. Fields, gardens, and wetlands offer different prey and shelter.
Look for orb-weavers in vegetation and hunting spiders on leaves or soil. Never identify a species from colour alone.
India → Eastern Ghats → Andhra Pradesh and a published Tamil Nadu record.
This points to the Gooty tarantula example. It is not a range map or a state-boundary claim.
Worked Example: The Gooty Tarantula
6. A tree-living spider with a small known range
The Gooty tarantula is Poecilotheria metallica. Its blue colour makes it memorable, but colour alone cannot prove an identification.
It lives in trees and hunts prey rather than building a round capture web. Its known Indian records lie in the Eastern Ghats.
An older assessment described a very narrow Andhra Pradesh range. A 2019 field paper reported it farther south in Tamil Nadu.
Read the detailed Gooty tarantula lesson for the species story.
7. Three different conservation labels
IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature assesses extinction risk. Its published Gooty assessment says Critically Endangered.
CITES The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species controls cross-border trade. It lists the Poecilotheria genus in Appendix II.
Indian law India’s Wild Life (Protection) Act lists the Gooty tarantula in Schedule II. This is a domestic legal schedule.
These three labels answer different questions. IUCN is about extinction risk, CITES about international trade, and Indian law about national protection.
QUICK CHECK 3 OF 4 · TRUE OR FALSE
CITES Appendix II and India’s Wild Life (Protection) Act Schedule II mean the same thing.
They are different systems. CITES regulates international trade. Schedule II gives protection under Indian law.
Show answer
False. CITES and India’s legal schedules serve different purposes.
Why Spiders Matter and How to Stay Safe
8. Natural pest control and food webs
Spiders eat insects and other small animals. Studies show that spiders can help suppress crop pests.
They also become food for birds, lizards, and other animals. Removing spiders can disturb both sides of this food web.
One spider does not replace farming controls. Habitat care and careful pesticide use support many useful predators.
9. Venom, myths, and sensible safety
Most spiders use venom to subdue prey. That does not mean every spider is dangerous to people.
Some bites can still hurt, and reactions vary. Indian ornamental tarantula bites deserve caution.
Do not handle an unknown spider. Step back and let it move away.
If bitten, wash the area and seek medical advice. Seek urgent care for severe pain, breathing trouble, or spreading symptoms.
Conservation: Habitat and Trade
10. What threatens spiders?
Forest loss removes tree hollows and shelter for forest spiders. Heavy pesticide use can harm spiders in farm habitats.
Collecting rare tarantulas for pets adds pressure. A colourful animal is not a safe or lawful souvenir.
Protecting habitat matters more than moving one spider. Report suspected illegal collection to local wildlife authorities.
11. The exam distinction to remember
A tarantula is a spider, not an insect or scorpion. Many spiders hunt without a capture web.
For Gooty, keep the three labels separate: IUCN Critically Endangered, CITES Appendix II, and Indian law Schedule II.
Do not assume those labels apply to every Indian spider. Check the named species and the current legal text.
QUICK CHECK 4 OF 4 · TRUE OR FALSE
Protecting forest habitat can help a tree-living tarantula keep its shelter and prey.
Tree hollows offer shelter. Healthy forest also supports the insects and other prey that spiders need.
Show answer
True. Habitat protects both shelter and food.
Sources and Official Records
- American Museum of Natural History: spider and tarantula anatomy.
- Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History: insect body plan.
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute: spiders in order Araneae.
- Natural History Museum: silk and webs.
- Araneae of India: living spider checklist.
- Journal of Threatened Taxa: 2019 Tamil Nadu Gooty record.
- IUCN and TRAFFIC: Gooty risk and trade review.
- CITES Appendices: Poecilotheria in Appendix II.
- India Code: Wild Life (Protection) Act, Schedule II, Part G.
- Global Ecology and Biogeography: spider pest-control meta-analysis.
- CDC: spider-bite safety and first aid.
Practice These Ideas
Try the four checks above, then answer a full multiple-choice question below.
Answer the quick checks throughout this lesson to see your score.
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