B. hamorii v. B. smithi

[Ed Zeppelin]

I'm trying to research the difference(s) between the smithi and hamorii T with little success. From what I have read people seem to prefer the smithi, but I'm not sure as to why. Is one more prized over the other? Is it disposition, ease of care, initial cost, longevity, etc? Any insight that can be shared would be most helpful.

Sent from my Commodore 64 running Windoze 95

 

[Enn49]

Just to confuse you Brachypelma were recently reclassified. what was B.smithi is now B.hamorii and what was B.annitha is now B.smithi. In other words it is worth checking with the seller what he really has.

 

[Mr. P]

It's not so much of everything being reclassified, Arachnoclown posted a good video describing this reclassification.

 

[Enn49]

I’m still unsure what I have, TSS sold the sling as smithi but it was right amongst the change... I should’ve gave them a call but why bother? I’ll be happy with either

I'm lucky that 2 of mine were bought in 2014 and the other in 2016 so I think I can be sure they're harmorii

 

[Arachnoclown]

B. Smithi is still B. Smithi....never changed. B. Hamorri is B. Hamorri. Two totally different spiders. B. Annithia is a junior synonym of B. Smithi.

 

[Arachnoclown]

I’ll find out soon enough My gut says it must be ex Annitha but I personally can wait...

If its mature...Take some really good photos and I'll tell you what you got.

 

[Whitelightning777]

All of the above are good ones to get so go for it.

 

[MassExodus]

View attachment 30713
lol have at it

Lmao totally unfair. But funny.

 

[MassExodus]

Unless I'm mistaken, or you happen to be a wizard with arachnids, you wont ID it until its got its adult colors or mature sex organs

 

[Arachnoclown]

View attachment 30713
lol have at it

Lmao....give it another 4-5 years Bro!!!!

 

[Arachnoclown]

The year you bought you T doesn't matter...they have been exported and sold wrong for decades. This girl I bought in 2008, sold to me as a B. Smithi...actually a B. Hamorii

 

[Whitelightning777]

I think they're actually the same, like A geniculata versus A brockelhursti. In terms of actual ownership or enjoyment, I doubt there's any real world difference.

Those scientists are probably laughing hysterically at this situation. The change was made to enlarge a national park across a river in the native area, with a basically BS excuse as far as I can tell.

Just select the best T in the best health for the best price and be happy.

 

[MassExodus]

Well they have a large river between them, so this must be speciation from way back. Right?

 

[Whitelightning777]

But for all intents and purposes, both appear to be identical.

 

[Arachnoclown]

But for all intents and purposes, both appear to be identical.

Nope...not identical at all. Totally different. The coloration on the patella is different. The spermatheca is also totally different between the two. Along with bands on the chelicerae. From a uneducated view they may be the same but they definitely are not. They are found in entirely different areas as well. There are 4 other species of Brachypelma found between them and a extremely large river as well.

 

[Arachnoclown]

Brachypelma smithi

Brachypelma hamorii

 

[Whitelightning777]

Oh, interesting.

 

[sschind]

Nope...not identical at all. Totally different. The coloration on the patella is different. The spermatheca is also totally different between the two. Along with bands on the chelicerae. From a uneducated view they may be the same but they definitely are not. They are found in entirely different areas as well. There are 4 other species of Brachypelma found between them and a extremely large river as well.View attachment 30734 View attachment 30735

I'm guessing if you showed full body shots from a from a foot or so away 95% of the people would say its the same spider. That's the uneducated view and that is what I think Whitelightning was referring to. I know to some people that is blasphemy but far more people are uneducated than educated.

That is not a knock by any means. I truly appreciate your posts and I have probably learned more about any one subject on Tarantulas from your posts on the subject than any other. The video in the other thread the range maps and the two pictures in this thread were the most informative I have ever seen on the subject. Now I know what to look for when mine grow up. Its just going to be a while.

 

[Whitelightning777]

Ok, I'm wondering about how many of these are actually hybrids. It's real easy to see how mistakes could be made.

Even one's like B klassi and B boehmi can be told apart. Those 2 are tricky however. It would be interesting to see pics of molts, specifically female versus female for each. Those, if they differ a lot would be the ultimate proof as to which species you have.

Google has limits however.

---

So, smithi doesn't have the white or cream colored hairs just all red and black & that's the difference between them?

 

[Arachnoclown]

I'm guessing if you showed full body shots from a from a foot or so away 95% of the people would say its the same spider. That's the uneducated view and that is what I think Whitelightning was referring to. I know to some people that is blasphemy but far more people are uneducated than educated.

That is not a knock by any means. I truly appreciate your posts and I have probably learned more about any one subject on Tarantulas from your posts on the subject than any other. The video in the other thread the range maps and the two pictures in this thread were the most informative I have ever seen on the subject. Now I know what to look for when mine grow up. Its just going to be a while.

Im not trying to knocking anyone. Sometimes the way i type sounds like im a huge ****.... In your example the 95% of the people should either educate themselves or just say i dont know. It's ok to not know the difference. The worst thing you can do as a hobbiest is to shrug it off and start giving out bad info because you dont understand. The information is out there for everyone....its not a secret. The problem is 100% in the hobby. People keep spreading misinformation instead of researching things for themselves... Facebook groups are the worst ive seen. If everyone would read the revised information given about the new species they would understand...but they won't it's too boring to read and study a small article. So they will just say B. Smithi is now B. Hamorii . @Whitelightning777 Casual hobbiest should never breed these spiders...we don't need hobbyform redknees. It may already be too late.