While the main star of Paddington in Peru is two-legged and sports a blue duffle coat, there was an eight-legged furry creature that had us talking when watching the film.
When the Brown family find themselves trekking into the Peruvian jungle to search for Aunt Lucy, they encounter the purple-kneed tarantula. But is it real?
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Is the purple-kneed tarantula real?
The purple-kneed tarantula isn’t actually real – but it is based on real spider species found in South America.
The visual effects team at Framestore took inspiration from several species, including the Avicularia purpurea – also known as the Ecuadorian purple tarantula or Ecuador purple pinktoe.
As its name suggests, it can mainly be found in Ecuador in the Amazon region and has a striking purple-blue iridescence. Luckily for Mr Brown, who suffers from arachnophobia, the largest thing it eats is small rodents.
Another species is Avicularia juruensis which is found in South America – predominantly in Colonia, Ecuador, Peru and Brazil. It’s also known as the Amazonian pink toe spider or Peruvian pinktoe tarantula.
The bright hue of these spiders might be explained by their environment: in a 2022 study, scientists found that birds species tended to be 30 per cent more colourful towards the equator.
So if you find yourself trekking through the Peruvian rainforest, you won’t encounter a purple-kneed tarantula – but you will find plenty of other arachnids.
Top image: the purple-kneed tarantula from Paddington in Peru. Credit: StudioCanal
