People have been afraid of spiders for a long time. The term of fear of spiders is known as arachnophobia. Of course, a phobia itself is known as an "irrational fear of something." I myself have suffered from arachnophobia and also suffer from astraphobia (fear of thunderstorms).
For the most part, the terrifying attributes of spiders is very overblown. If you think about it, it makes sense. The vast majority of spiders are small and all they want to do is be left alone to seek out prey, find a mate, have baby spiders (spiderlings) and go on with their lives. Humans are far too big to eat and really are just more of a threat than they are a meal.
That being said, there are some really scary species of spider out there. Keep in mind, a lot of their fearsome nature is hyperbole and legend with little in the way of facts to back them up. However, when it comes to spider venom and the one spider who seems to have earned some if its reputation, you cannot go wrong with :
The Brazilian Wandering Spider
Take a look at that spider right there. The Wandering Spider, such as that, resembles what we here in North America sometimes call "tarantulas" but they are not actually tarantulas. They can grow to a size of 5 - 6 inches in diameter and there entire body length can grow to almost two inches. They are a variety of colors and hairy in nature, which probably just makes them look even more terrifying.
They are known as "wandering" spiders because, well, that's what they do. They wander the floors of the Brazilian jungles and other areas looking for food. You are not going to see the Brazilian Wandering Spider hanging out in the middle of a web. They hunt - at night. During they day, the hide in cool areas like old termite mounds of even among bunches of bananas in banana trees (hence they are also known as banana spiders). They hunt insects, other spiders and even small animals.
Why are Brazilian Wandering Spiders so dangerous?
The fact is the Wandering Spider has a very potent venom. It is a neurotoxin that causes its prey a lot of problems - most of them fatal. They will use that venom against people, if they have to, and they have very large fangs. This means the bite itself will be exceedingly painful, and powerful venom glands which means they can produce a huge amount of spider toxin into a person's system. Female Brazilian Wandering Spiders can pack a bigger wallop than the males.
So, they are dangerous because their bites are painful due to their large fangs. The Brazilian Wandering Spider bite is dangerous because of the toxicity of its venom and how much it can deliver. The Wandering Spider is also dangerous because it is so large it can deliver a lot of poison.
However, it is also believed the Brazilian Wandering Spider can deliver "dry bites" since it produces only so much venom during a day and prefers to use that venom for food. Thus, if it is threatened, it can bite using those powerful and painful fangs to deter threats without injecting venom.
Are Wandering Spiders found in North America?
The Brazilian Wandering Spider, as you may guess from the name, is not usually found in North America. They are very rare here. However, they have been known to end up inside shipments of bananas and end up popping out of bananas once they reach North America and scare the heck out of store clerks and even customers.
As such, you probably do not need to worry about the Brazilian Wandering Spider if you live in North America. However, if you happen to like working around large bunches of bananas or live in a jungle, that might be a different story.
COMING FEBRUARY 23 - S.P.I.D.A.R.
On February 23 a new tale of terror from author Bryan Alaspa comes from Beacon Publishing Group.
The town of Whittier Alaska is isolated and alone, ready for winter and then the body washes up on shore. A body containing an man-made, unimaginable horror. A horror that has only three things as its purpose:
Invade
Control
Destroy
You've never seen terror like this. And you'll definitely want to read this one with the lights on.
Horror has eight legs - S.P.I.D.A.R.
BWA