Egyptian giant solpugid
Galeodes arabs
— Where the name comes from
Solifugae means “those that flee the sun”, from sol and fugere, and for once the scientific name is also useful description: they are nocturnal animals that by day seek shade at any cost — including a person’s shade, which is what has generated the reputation for chasing people. English calls them camel spiders, Afrikaans jagspinnekop, “hunting spider”: none of the three names is correct, because they are not spiders.
— Facts
- Group
- Arachnids · Arachnida
- Order
- Camel spiders
- Habitat
- Deserts and semi-deserts, in burrows dug in the sand
- Range
- North Africa and the Middle East
- Size
- Up to 7 cm of body, 15 cm with legs
- Diet
- Insects, spiders, scorpions, small lizards
- Lifespan
- 1–2 years
— Characteristics
- 01
It has proportionally the largest chelicerae of any arachnid.
- 02
It has no venom: it kills by sheer force of jaws.
- 03
It runs at 16 km/h, the fastest of any arachnid.
— What sets it apart
A small military mythology has grown around its reputation: soldiers stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan told of enormous beasts that chase people, scream and bite camels. The reality is less epic and quite explicable — the animal runs towards shade, and if that shade moves it follows, giving the impression of a charge. It has no venom of any kind. It does have proportionally the largest chelicerae of any arachnid, two vertical pincers that cut rather than pierce, and with them it devours prey its own size at a rate that obliges it to eat almost constantly.
