THE NATURAL HISTORY AND EVOLUTION OF TARANTULA SPIDERS

Abstract

Theraphosidae, commonly known as tarantulas, represent some of the most charismatic spiders on the planet. With almost 1000 described species, they have colonized the subtropics of every continent and have adapted to fill many of ecological niches. I address gaps in our understanding of the tarantula phylogeny with a view towards understanding the evolutionary patterns involved in generating the great diversity of tarantulas we see today. My thesis is hence focused into three main parts: (i) constructing the first robust subfamily-level phylogeny for tarantulas, (ii) time-calibrating this phylogeny to offer insights into their widespread distributions in tandem with biogeographic data, and (iii) estimating the ancestral histories of greenness, blueness, and other life history traits, with correlative tests to determine the functions of colouration in theraphosids.