Attack (Almost) of the Sun Spider

While sitting together in the living room last night, I noticed an expression of bewilderment developing on that girl.  “What’s going on?” I asked.

She pointed to the floor.   An inch-long pale, leggy thing stood facing her on the carpet about four feet away.  “What is THAT?”

We have some creepy spiders and bugs around here.   Topping the list of creepy, in my estimation, is the black widow spider.  Those, I see regularly along the foundation of my house and sometimes in my garage.  They are black and shiny as a new lethal weapon and their long legs shift them along like fast wings.  Everything about them is sharp-looking and deadly.

Second on my list of creepy is the thing that girl claimed (after I captured it my wadded sock and released it outside) “was running toward me really fast.”

This creature has many names: sun spider, wind scorpion, camel spider, solifugid, or what is THAT!  These little monsters are members of the order Solifugae, which means “those that flee from the sun.”  They are not exactly spiders, but they look just as disturbing—coming equipped with eight long legs and inordinately large jaws (chelicerae).  They tend to live in deserts, but are widely distributed around the entire world.  In some regions, sun spiders can reach up to six inches in size. They are extremely fast movers.  Some are said capable of reaching half the speed of a running man.  This is not a claim I wish to test anytime soon.

Sun spiders are both ambush hunters, feeding on insects or small animals, and plant eaters.  They are normally tan in color.  Solifugids do not like direct light.  They are mostly nocturnal and they tend to keep to the ground.

Technically, they are harmless to humans.

Today, I am not feeling that technical.

They scare me.

And, as a point of fact, they can give you a nasty bite if you pester them enough.  Posted is a photograph from sydkab.com.  Also posted is a really creepy video.  If you watch the video, make sure you place another person nearby so you can hug them once the video is done playing.

Sources: Wikipedia, https://sydkab.com/2014/10/08/arachnids-solifugids/

--Mitchell Hegman

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-6K7YS4HH4