Seizure of more than 3,000 Amazon tarantulas at Lima airport, Digi Mart USA News (Lima, Peru): More than 3,000 tarantulas, including some of the largest species from the Amazon, were seized at Jorge Chávez International Airport, Peru’s most important airport, after being found hidden in the luggage of three men: two Germans and a Pole who intended to travel to Germany.
In a statement, Peru’s National Forestry and Wildlife Service (SERFOR) said the three foreigners were detained at the airport and will face criminal proceedings. Eggs, hatchlings and adult specimens were carefully concealed, according to the agency.
Cora Suárez, head of SERFOR’s inspection post at the airport, said the luggage contained eggs, hatchlings and adult spiders. “The traffickers made a meticulous selection to have different species, some of which have not yet been described by science,” Suárez said in the statement.
Authorities did not initially know what the spiders were intended for. They identified several Pamphobeteus antinous, known as the blue-legged tarantula, which experts say can reach up to 20 centimeters with its legs extended.
These tarantulas typically feed on insects.
Pamphobeteus antinous is one of the largest tarantula species in South America and lives in the Amazon regions of Peru and Bolivia. Peruvian law classifies it as vulnerable, and it appears on the list of legally protected threatened wildlife.
“Once the evaluations are completed, the tarantulas will be placed in an authorized breeding center,” the statement said. The agency also noted that this is not the first such seizure.
In 2024, police arrested a South Korean at the same airport carrying 320 tarantulas hidden in containers and bags under his clothing.
The foreigners could be investigated for illegal trafficking of wildlife, a crime in Peru punishable by three to five years in prison. If it is proven that they were transporting species protected under national legislation, the penalty could rise to four to seven years.
Another similar case was recently thwarted by Peruvian authorities. In February of this year, authorities rescued nearly 500 wild birds held in captivity, including brotogeris versicolurus, commonly known as parakeets or catitas.
The animals were to be sold inside and outside Peru from a house in the Amazon region.
