for the Chinese market were decreasing in size. The smaller sizes were suspected to be a consequence of a declining population due to excessive export. Exporting is not the only threat, though; some local people have reportedly made a habit of killing these spiders in a nearly systematic way using pesticides, pouring gasoline into burrows, or simply killing migrating spiders on sight. The reasons for these actions seem to be an irrational fear based on myth surrounding B. hamorii and related species. Thus, whether the listing strengthened the wild population or not remains uncertain. The species has been bred successfully in captivity. In 1994, all remaining Brachypelma species were added to Appendix II. Large numbers of Mexican redknee tarantulas caught in the wild continue to be smuggled out of Mexico. At least 3,000 specimens of Mexican tarantulas were reported to have been sent to the United States or Europe a few years prior to 2017, most of which were Mexican redknee tarantulas. References External links (Photographs taken in the wild.) Mexican Red Knee Tarantula Care and guide Theraphosidae Endemic spiders of Mexico Spiders described in 1997 Fauna of the Sierra Madre del Sur