Yara Contreras Quevedo

Yara Contreras Quevedo Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little.

'Like a warm hug from home': The addictive love cake only baked at Christmas
18/12/2024

'Like a warm hug from home': The addictive love cake only baked at Christmas

Could this be what our home on Moon or Mars might look like?
18/12/2024

Could this be what our home on Moon or Mars might look like?

The innovative, green future of skiing
17/12/2024

The innovative, green future of skiing

Coquito: Puerto Rico's favourite holiday drink
17/12/2024

Coquito: Puerto Rico's favourite holiday drink

Tourists in Fiji ill after suspected pina-colada poisoning
16/12/2024

Tourists in Fiji ill after suspected pina-colada poisoning

'World-first' AI camera targets drink-drivers
16/12/2024

'World-first' AI camera targets drink-drivers

Why 'digital twins' could speed up drug discovery
13/12/2024

Why 'digital twins' could speed up drug discovery

Rare dinosaur trio fetches £12.4m at auction
13/12/2024

Rare dinosaur trio fetches £12.4m at auction

The global arachnid trade is threatening the world's most famous spider species. And it's primarily driven by souvenir c...
12/12/2024

The global arachnid trade is threatening the world's most famous spider species. And it's primarily driven by souvenir collectors.
With their eight beady eyes and furry limbs boasting retractable claws, tarantulas are polarising creatures. During Jackie Peeler's more than 40-year career managing creepy crawlies in zoos and museums, she's seen people love and fear them in equal measure. About 25 years ago, she used to run a mobile zoo programme where she would shuttle tarantulas around to places like outdoor festivals and malls. She'd take them out of their carriers and show them off to captivated crowds who'd exclaim over their furry legs and cartoon-like expressions.
"There is a powerful connection when people can see something they may never see in the wild," says Peeler, now manager of the animal care centre at the Boston Museum of Science. "Invertebrates and insects can be one of those things that people, even when they're terrified, are still fascinated by."
Peeler doesn't condone showing off tarantulas in such a way anymore – they should have agency to hide from crowds if they want to – but even when they're not front and centre, these unusual creatures command attention. With that magnetism comes a dark undertow; enthusiasts are driving the illegal trade of tarantulas worldwide.
"Tarantulas are charismatic organisms," says Chris Hamilton, an assistant professor in the department of entomology, plant pathology and nematology at the University of Idaho. "That's what's great about them because we can use them to educate the public."
Hamilton believes the "tarantula hobby" started gathering steam in the 2000s. Today, researchers regularly see enthusiasts boasting collections of more than 100 species in online forums. "[These] forums show that people collect spiders a bit like people collect Pokemon – they want to 'catch 'em all'," says Alice Hughes, associate professor of biology at the University of Hong Kong. It's a spot-on analogy, considering how many different colours and patterns tarantulas can assume.

'The sixth great extinction is happening', conservation expert warns
12/12/2024

'The sixth great extinction is happening', conservation expert warns

Whale makes epic migration, astonishing scientists
11/12/2024

Whale makes epic migration, astonishing scientists

How the Amazon's 'Boiling River' foreshadows climate change
11/12/2024

How the Amazon's 'Boiling River' foreshadows climate change

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