Look What We Found In Iraq...

[Jim Phaserman 0]

Are you arachnophibic? if so, don't read this.

 

Click for Spoiler:

this is a picture of a soldier holding a pair of Camel Spiders. these things are big, but relatively harmless. their bite isn't venomous, but it is painful and can cause shock and bleeding. they can grow to be as large as a dinner plate (about 10 or 12 inches! Holy Cripes!)

Edited May 21, 2004 by Lieutenant JG Jim Phaserman

[Star Trek Fan 0]

What???

huh???

:P

[A l t e r E g o 9]

 

This is a pair of camel spiders?

[Jim Phaserman 0]

Lets try this pic, shall we?

 

Edited May 21, 2004 by Lieutenant JG Jim Phaserman

[A l t e r E g o 9]

Yikes! :P I've finally seen something uglier than a potato bug. Does it do any tricks?

[Jim Phaserman 0]

From what I've heard, they stand on the street corners in baghda...oh, not those tricks? Umm, it jumps from the ground to the belly of a camel, and is reported to eat it's way to the camel's stomach. it has 4 pairs of legs, and only runs on three. it has an average speed of ten miles per hour.

[Tina 0]

::starts to scream:; SPIDERS EWWWW

 

none in NY thank g-d

[Beam me up 0]

I talked to a friend in Iraq. He said they kill those things with their knives.

[RikerChick 5]

::starts to scream:; SPIDERS EWWWW

*joins Tina in screaming* :P Oh why did I open this thread. ew ew ew ew ew ew ew

[Jeanway 0]

I personally think potato bugs are beautiful. And do you think they sell camel spiders here in the U.S. anywhere? I'm serious.

[Vulcan IDIC 0]

All I have to say is that I'm glad they are over there and not over here. I also hope they stay there and don't stowaway on some poor unsuspecting soldiers gear. :P

[Jim Phaserman 0]

to my knowledge, there are none in the US.

[fenriz275 0]

There probably are now :P

[Beam me up 0]

It presumably takes two of them to start making little baby camel spiders.

[she_wolf 0]

GEWW,..* SHUDDERS * grouse !!!

[Nemesis 0]

Awwwwww it's sooooo cute, I gots to buy me one of those and a camel!

[hangon 3]

EAWWW no thanks just leave it there :P if i saw that thing i would be off like h.ell :P

[Odo 0]

Neat I want One

[mj 7]

How awful! What terrible bugs! How do you bear it all...war and death and weird giant spiders!? Do those things get into people's knapsacks and tents? How do you keep your head in all this? I would be going crazy.

[WEAREBORG4102 0]

I hate being arachnophobic and insectophobic....

 

*shivers*

[Ace 0]

:P I don't mind spiders but that thing looks pretty painful.

 

Potato bugs, AE? If you thought those were the ugliest I could show you a hundred worse-looking bugs 'round here. I hafta kill a ton of PBugs every yr.

[bearded ape 0]

Urban legends about the camel spider (properly termed a solpugid or solifugid) are as old as the proverbial hills, but they made a huge resurgence when vectored by American troops in Kuwait during Desert Storm. They're not quite as big as your hand (unless you're a five-year-old), and very shy and secretive. They do like to hide in the shadows, and they do run very, very quickly for a critter (they can reach about 10 MPH, the fastest known non-flying arthropod). They make no noise whatsoever, they have no venom whatsoever, and they do not eat flesh--they eat small desert arthropods like crickets and pillbugs. The rumors of their attacking camels, or crawling onto sleeping GIs' faces, apparently stem from one of two things, both of which may be true to some extent: (1) they may use hair to line their burrow when they are about to lay a batch of eggs, said hair being clipped from dead camels or other dead mammals (and a sleeping GI is not much different), and/or (2) dead camels are covered with flies, and crawling over a camel corpse may make for a convenient way to get a good meal of flies.

 

We have camel spiders in the sandy parts of the southwest U.S. and Mexico (in Mexico they are called matevenados), considerably smaller than the Middle Eastern types, but of the same shy, unassuming habits. Completely harmless and beneficial critters, like the desert equivalent of a praying mantis.

 

sorry, but usally animals arent as bad as lots of people make em out to be

[mj 7]

Well, I have always appreciated praying mantis's but those things in that first photo actually looked bigger than a hand......

[dark_moon_drago 0]

*takes one look at spider*...... :P KEEP IN IRAQ!!!! :lol: *passesout* Archniphobic<----

[Jim Phaserman 0]

How awful! What terrible bugs! How do you bear it all...war and death and weird giant spiders!? Do those things get into people's knapsacks and tents? How do you keep your head in all this? I would be going crazy.

when it comes to life in Iraq, Mjham, spiders are the least of your worries. I was talking to my brother on the phone, he said these things come running at you across the desert at full tilt, then stop once they get to your shadow and sit there.

[dark_moon_drago 0]

*wakes up then heres jim's coment* :P They WHAT?! :lol: *passes out again*

[Jack_Bauer 1]

Wow. Hearing that they kill these things with knives kind of reminds me of the voyager episode "Gravity". You know where they kill and eat the giant spiders that live under the rocks.

 

That thing is seriously freaky though. I'm afraid to leave my feet on the ground.

[Jim Phaserman 0]

from what I understand, they don't attack humans. they just like sitting in your shadow because it's cooler than the rest of the desert.

[dark_moon_drago 0]

Yeah but exactly HOW close do they get to you? I mean.....those are some **VERY** big spiders! :biggrin:

[Captain Jean-Luc Picard 1]

It looks like something off of Star Trek!