The photo below reportedly comes from a soldier, stationed in Baghdad, who was bitten by a camel spider that was hiding in his sleeping bag. The photo shows two spiders attached together, and the camera angle makes them look a tad larger than they really are (they’re about the size of an adult’s hand). They also tend to seek out shade during the daytime, so it’s not terribly unusual to see them charging across the desert at you – only to come to a screeching halt when they reach your shadow
[thumb=H]camel_spider12804_8420225.JPG[/thumb]
facts..
Camel spiders can grow to be as large as dinner plates.
Camel spiders can traverse desert sand at speeds up to 25 MPH, making screaming noises as they run.
Camel spiders can jump several feet in the air.
Camel spiders eat the stomachs of camels , hence the name “camel spider.” (Legend includes the detail that camel spiders eat camel stomachs from either the outside in or the inside out. In the former case they supposedly jump up from the ground and grab onto camels’ bellies from underneath; in the latter case exactly how spiders allegedly as large as dinner plates get into camels’ stomachs intact remains unexplained.)
Camel spiders are venomous, and their venom contains a powerful anesthetic that numbs their victims (thus allowing them to gnaw away at living, immobilized animals without being noticed). U.S. soldiers were said to have been attacked by camel spiders at night but remained completely unaware of their plight until they awakened in the morning to find chunks of their flesh missing.
sweeeeeet ![]()