Colorado Parks and Wildlife is celebrating Friday the 13th with something many consider creepy: a tarantula. The state agency shared a short clip to their Instagram with the well-known giant furry spider making a trek across a gravel path.
Colorado wildlife officials say it’s mating season for tarantulas, and many of these spiders are traveling to find a mate.
You’ll find these spiders in the southeast corner of the state, which is mostly plains, away from Colorado’s iconic Rocky Mountains.
A recent NPR article focused on the town of La Junta, Colorado, where it’s pretty easy to catch sight of a tarantula that’s on the hunt for a partner. The town has become so well-known for the spiders this time of year that they’ve seen a bump in tourism.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife says the tarantula in the video is a male based on the hooks on the front legs and the enlarged pedipalps, which are the second set of smaller-looking legs on the spider’s head.
Sadly, the spider will die after mating.
Learn more about spiders and other arachnids like scorpions.
