Hello, kiddies.

Just in time for Halloween, I decided to write a blog about something extremely spooky that was found recently. A giant spider. That's right, a GIANT spider.

Remember that part in the Harry Potter series where Ron and Harry ran away from giant spiders?

Well, they are very real.



THE STORY

An entomologist, Piotyr Naskrecki, at the Harvard University Museum of Comparative Zoology, recently traveled to a rainforest in Guyana to perform some kind of research in the rainforest.

As he was walking throughout the forest, he noticed something crawling beneath his feet. He wasn't startled, though, as he was just expecting some kind of rodent to be doing such thing, such as a rat. As he investigated further, he was somewhat confused at he was looking at. But then he used his flashlight to take a closer look at what it was, and it was a giant ass spider.

He took some pictures for us.



I MEAN LOOK AT IT. IT'S THE SIZE OF HIS ENTIRE HAND.

IT'S THE SIZE OF A SMALL PUPPY.

At first when he saw it, he said it was cute. Cute my ass.

ARACHNOLOGY

He found a South American Goliath birdeater.

Yes, it's pretty much as scary as it sounds.

It's a rare type of spider only found in rainforests. And it also happens to be the world's largest spider. Its leg span can reach the size of a child's forearm, or up to 30 centimeters or more (~1 foot). And its body can reach the size of a large fist, or around 15 or more centimeters in diameter. And its weight can go up to 6 ounces or more.

spooked yet?



It naturally crawls among the rainforest at night for prey. It usually eats birds, frogs, and other rodents. However, most of its prey comes from earthworms, since they are extremely nutricious. It does not attack humans unless tempted. They can also live up to 15 years.

For self defense, it uses its prickly hairs to attack danger and its 2-inch fangs as well.

The prickly hairs can get into your mucus membrane, eyes, or face, and can be extremely itchy and irritating. And worst of all, they can stay there for daaaaays. They also serve as a sound mechanism to make a horrible hissing sound, similar to separating velcro.

Talk about annoying.

Its terrifying 2-inch fangs also serve a good purpose. If you annoy it, it can bite you, and it can be extremely painful. Piotyr put it as "a nail going through your hand".

LESSON LEARNED: DO NOT ANNOY SPIDERS.



Fortunately, the bite is not so venomous to the point in which it can be life-threatening, but it should definetly be treated immediately. The worst part is the pain.

FINAL SUMMATION



Although horrifying, the South American Goliath birdeater is rather harmless to humans, but is huge. It is the world's largest spider.

You will probably never see one of these things in person, but I just wanted to spook you.

If you're interested, check out this video about the spider.

Thanks for reading!



Have a spooktastic Halloween!

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