NOT for the arachnophobes!

[ThunderWeasel]

Presenting... a spider about the size of a puppy. http://news.yahoo.com/goliath-encou...surprises-scientist-rainforest-125720953.html

 

[ACFFAN69]

Presenting... a spider about the size of a puppy. http://news.yahoo.com/goliath-encou...surprises-scientist-rainforest-125720953.html

Thank you so much for the nightmares you jerk!!!!

"The birdeater's enormity is evident from the sounds it makes. "Its feet have hardened tips and claws that produce a very distinct, clicking sound, not unlike that of a horse's hooves hitting the ground," he wrote, but "not as loud."

Prickly hairs and 2-inch fangs

When Naskrecki approached the imposing creature in the rainforest, it would rub its hind legs against its abdomen. At first, the scientist thought the behavior was "cute," he said, but then he realized the spider was sending out a cloud of hairs with microscopic barbs on them. When these hairs get in the eyes or other mucous membranes, they are "extremely painful and itchy," and can stay there for days, he said. [Creepy-Crawly Gallery: See Spooky Photos of Spiders]

But its prickly hairs aren't the birdeater's only line of defense; it also sports a pair of 2-inch-long (5 centimeters) fangs. Although the spider's bite is venomous, it's not deadly to humans. But it would still be extremely painful, "like driving a nail through your hand," Naskrecki said.

And the eight-legged beast has a third defense mechanism up its hairy sleeve. The hairs on the front of the spider's body have tiny hooks and barbs that make a hissing sound when they rub against each other, "sort of like pulling Velcro apart," Naskrecki said."

 

[ThunderWeasel]

Well, I DID title the thread "NOT for the arachnophobes"...

 

[Autumn_LoL]

Was very much expecting something like this...



But cool article none the less.

 

[KyraFortune]

Am I weird for kinda wanting to hold one? Spiders are cool in my books. Same book as snakes. Common fear but come in so many varieties, most of which are cool as fuck looking!

Example: The Peacock Spider

 

[ThunderWeasel]

I can understand wanting one as a pet. I've often considered a tarantula or scorpion as a pet... but as I'm having THIS much trouble just keeping carnivorous plants alive, I think having an arachnid pet would be a bad idea.

 

[ACFFAN69]

From what I've seen, Tarantula's are a lot easier of a pet then a carnivorous plants.
Once you get the setup right, the only real risk is it getting injured during moulting.