Talk:Aphonopelma

Etymology of the genus name
Aphonopelma can be dissected into a + phon + o + pelma. Pelma is routinely used in the genus names of tarantulas to mean 'leg'. A- would be expected to mean 'not, without'. The problem is the phon component, which could come from φωνή, giving an overall meaning like 'without sound-making leg', i.e. 'without stridulating leg', or from φόνος, giving an overall meaning like 'without killing leg'. It seems pretty clear that Pocock (1901) meant the former, but he doesn't actually say this, so the evidence is too indirect in my view to be used in the article. Aphonopelma was a genus "dismembered from Eurypelma". The first such listed by Pocock is Citharacanthus which is described as having "a system of stout plumose stridulating-bristles upon the trochanter of the palp and first leg", whereas Aphonopelma has "no plumose scopula on posterior side of trochanter of palp, merely simple hairs, and no spines or spiniform setae on the posterior side of the coxa of the palp", i.e. no apparatus that would enable it to stridulate. Peter coxhead (talk) 10:38, 29 September 2019 (UTC)



Removing the re-direct from Dugesiella to Aphonopelma
According to the WSC, Dugesiella is now a genus, as such a new article should be made, and the overlapping species removed. MaskedLynx (talk) 00:08, 4 February 2023 (UTC)