Poecilotheria is a genus of tarantulas native to India and Sri Lanka. It was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1885.[2] They are arboreal tarantulas, commonly known as ornamental tarantulas,[citation needed] known for their vivid color patterns, fast movement, and potent venom compared to other tarantulas. As of 2019[update] all species are protected under CITES.
The genus name is a combination of the Ancient Greek "poikilos" (ποικίλος), meaning "spotted", and therion" (θηρίον), meaning "wild beast".
The species belonging to Poecilotheria were first documented in 1734 by Dutch zoologist Albertus Seba, when he went to Sri Lanka. He published the new spiders he saw in his illustrations of the book Albertus Seba's Thesaurus under the name of Aranea maxima ceilonica (meaning big spider from Sri Lanka). However, the most precise scientific explanation came in 1804 when Pierre Latreille described the spider as Mygale fasciata.[3][4]
After about 40 years delay, in 1850, C.L. Koch revised the generic name Mygale in to Scurria and species as Scurria fasciata. In 1885, Eugène Simon proposed the generic name Poeciotheria instead of Scurria due to species description errors with a mollusk.[3]
There is a debate about the taxonomy of a few species. Some sources identify Poecilotheria vittata of Sri Lanka as a synonym of Poecilotheria striata of India,[citation needed] but in other sources both of them have been given valid species identity.[1] The naming of Poecilotheria bara from Sri Lanka is also in debate – whether it is the same species as Poecilotheria subfusca, found in south central parts of Sri Lanka. In 2014, Ranil P. Nanayakkara, a Sri Lanka arachnologist, regarded P. vittata, P. striata, P. bara, and P. subfusca as distinct species.[3]
As of February 2016[update], the World Spider Catalog accepted the following species, seven from India, six from Sri Lanka and two from both countries.[1]