Credit: Live Science
A spider the size (& weight) of a puppy would surprise most of us. It is regarded as venemous, but doesn't pose a lethal threat to humans. Even so, with 5 cm (2 inch) fangs, it could inflict an injury best avoided. Plus it has another weapon: when it feels threatened, it rubs it abdomen with its hind legs, releasing a cloud of hairs which will sting & itch for weeks if they get into sensitive parts of the body, such as the eye, mouth & nose.
http://www.livescience.com/48340-goliath-birdeater-surprises-scientist.html / Piotr Naskrecki night nighttime walk rainforest Guyana rustling creeping underfoot small mammal possum rat entomologist photographer Harvard University Museum of Comparative Zoology brown furry mammal enormous puppy size spider South American Goliath birdeater Theraphosa blondi arachnid world world's largest spider Guinness World Records leg span foot30 centimeters body size large fist Live Science weigh 6 oz.170 grams the scientist wrote on his blog giant huntsman spider larger leg span much more delicate sounds feet have hardened tips claws clicking sound horse's hooves prickly hairs 2 inch fangs rainforest rub its hind legs against its abdomen cloud of hairs microscopic barbs eyes mucous membranes extremely painful itchy 2 inch long 5 centimeter fangs venomous deadly to humans extremely painful hairs front spider's body tiny hooks barbs Velcro eat birds killing small mammals leaf litter ground night spider species puncture drink bird eggs eat frogs insects main prey earthworms humid common spiders tropics South America lab study museum /
