Underground in burrows or above ground in trees, the secret realm of the tarantula often goes unseen. Interact with the tarantula's world by following its Life Cycle, then see the diversity of tarantulas in Species. But first click the tarantula and see what lies beneath.

See the full story on tarantulas in "Tarantulas: Earth Tigers and Bird Spiders," by Richard Conniff, Pages 98-115, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, September 1996.