Imagine walking through the jungle and spooking yourself out by hearing some strange animal beneath your feet. Now imagine your surprise and terror when you find that the animal was actually a Goliath tarantula spider the size of a puppy.
That is exactly what happened when Piotr Naskrecki, entomologist and photographer at Harvard University's Museum of Comparative Zoology, was walking through the rainforest in Guyana.
"When I turned on the flashlight, I couldn't quite understand what I was seeing," Naskrecki says.
Named the world's largest spider by the Guinness World Records, the South American Goliath birdeater is one scary beast of an insect. It has a leg span of "a child's forearm," or one foot, and the body size of "a large fist." The giant spider can weigh as much as a puppy at over six ounces.
The South American Goliath birdeater has sharp, two-inch long fangs that release poisonous venom that is not deadly to humans. But Naskrecki says that the massive fangs can still do damage, providing a bite that feels "like someone is driving a nail through your hand."
After observing the tarantula spider, Naskrecki discovered the insect was rubbing its hind legs against its abdomen. While the action may appear harmless to some, Naskrecki found that in reality, it was sending out clouds of hairs that have microscopic barbs which can be "extremely painful and itchy" if they enter the eyes or other mucous membranes.
The spider hunts at night, making it difficult for scientists or brave explorers to stumble upon one. "I've been working in the tropics in South America for almost the past 15 years, but I only saw the spider three times," Naskrecki says.
The giant night crawlers feed on frogs and insects, such as the earthworm.
Those with arachnophobia may be pleased to hear that there is one less giant spider crawling in the dead of night. Naskrecki captured the female spider and is planning on conducting further studies in his lab.
