Biggest Spider in the World

A spider with its four pair of legs and its fangs is not a creature that would earn adulation of human beings and what we are talking about here is the Goliath bird eating spider or the Theraphosa blondi, the biggest spider in the world. It is a member of the tarantula family with a leg span of 12 inches. It was named the Goliath bird eater by explorers of the Victorian era who witnessed it devouring a hummingbird.

Biggest Spider in the World - Distribution
These mammoth spiders are natives of the rainforests of the northern parts of South America. Due to their size they cannot climb on trees. They are terrestrial and are found living in burrows of marshy and swampy areas. They either dig these burrows themselves or live in those abandoned by rodents.

Biggest Spider in the World - Physical Appearance
Surely its size is enough to make one guess its identity. Nevertheless, besides its size, its coffee colored body that is covered with hair is hard to miss. Like all spiders Goliath birdeater tarantulas have eight legs and their body is divided into a cephalothorax (the head and neck combined) and the opisthosoma (abdomen). They can weigh as much as 6 ounces.

Biggest Spider in the World - Diet
Despite its name, the biggest spider in the world does not relish eating birds, although in some rare cases it may prey on baby birds. Its menu usually includes frogs, small snakes, crickets, mealworms, lizards and beetles. However, due to their strength and large size, they are also seen preying on bats and larger vertebrates. They don't have special hunting techniques. Nevertheless these are skilled nocturnal hunters that slowly sneak on their prey and pounce on them. They inject venom into their victims with the help of poison glands located at the base of their fangs. This neurotoxic venom attacks the nervous system that paralyzes the prey. The Goliath bird eating spider does not have mouth parts to chew or tear its prey. It injects digestive juices into its prey's body that dissolves all the tissue that it later sucks in.

Biggest Spider in the World - Defense Mechanism
The Goliath bird eating spider, which is the biggest spider in the world is pretty harmless to human beings. It attacks human beings only in defense. Its venom, though effective against its preys, is not lethal for human beings. Nevertheless, the bite of a Goliath birdeater, is very painful and may also cause nausea and sweating. One interesting fact about this species of tarantula is that they make a hissing sound when threatened. This is known as stridulation. This they do by rubbing the bristles on their legs together. Another defense mechanism is their ability to shoot urticating hair at their enemies. These are barb-like hair that are flicked by these spiders at their enemies by rubbing their legs on their abdomen. These fine hair are very irritating to skin, lungs and the mucous membrane.

Biggest Spider in the World - Some Quick Facts
Here are some quick facts on the biggest spider in the world:

• The female lives way beyond its maturity (with an average life span of 15 to 25 years), while the male dies in a year or two after having reached maturity. A male's average life span is about 3 to 6 years.
• The female attacks the male Goliath bird eating spider soon after it mates with the female.
• The males of this species can be distinguished due to the presence of a pair of mating hooks with which they prevent the female from biting him with her fangs as he mates with her. Almost half the number of males are killed or injured by the female while mating.
• In spite of its size the world's biggest spider has some natural predators like the spider wasps, some snakes, and other tarantulas. Know more facts about tarantula.
• In spite of its size, the Goliath bird eating spider is kept as pets by many.

Despite being harmless to human beings, we are the biggest enemies or the biggest threat to the survival of the biggest spider in the world. By destroying their habitat we are contributing greatly to their depleting numbers. Although many people keep the Goliath bird eating spider as pets, we know it is a wild animal and does best in its natural environment. To prevent them from becoming extinct, we have to ensure that we don't destroy their natural habitat.