The world’s largest spider roams the Amazon in search of insects, rodents and even birds to which it can sink its 2.5-inch teeth. With a leg span of about 0.3 meters and a weight of around 170 grams, this mighty arthropod also has a powerful name for itself: the giant (Goliath) bird eater.
These stealthy-hunting spiders live in the jungles of South America, where they weave mist webs around their nests, often built in broken and fallen trees. You might think that dragging dinner home to a place like this might be difficult for a spider, but it’s only a minor problem for this large arthropod.
The giant bird-eater (Theraphosa blondi) is considered the largest spider in the world, with eight highly feathered legs that grow up to 28 centimeters long. It also has a fairly large shell, about 12 centimeters across.
In fact, there is another type of spider with larger legs. At 30 centimeters, its legs are slightly larger than the legs of this giant, this other predator does not qualify as the largest spider, as it is smaller in other dimensions (still large enough to drag a rat for dinner).
Despite the names used, these spiders do not just eat birds. In fact, they mostly feed on insects, amphibians and small mammals, but may also prey on birds. A giant bird eater was seen opportunistically eating a common scale-backed antbird (Willisornis poecilinotus) trapped in mist nets, prompting the researchers to come up with new suggestions to ensure the animals studied don’t become easy food for passing predators.
Giant bird eaters are capable of killing birds without the aid of human research tools. But the catch part is a little more challenging.
They can also be bait.
When we look at the creatures that see the world’s largest spider as food, we see that mammals such as snakes, other tarantulas and coatis are on this list. But these giant spiders are not easy prey for them. The special structure on their legs allows them to launch spear-like hairs armed with sharp spines if a predator approaches. Known as urticaria, these hairs also coat females’ egg sacs, causing predators to think twice before attacking a large bag of baby spiders.
Male giant bird eaters weave something known as a sperm web when they want to reproduce. This structure is a tent-like net that is open at both ends and attached to a rock or tree stump. The male can crawl upside down into the sperm web, equipping it with sperm for the female to wander around and retrieve.
If you want to see what the babies of the world’s largest spider look like, Wellington Zoo in New Zealand became the first zoo in 20 years to hatch T. Blondei in 2020. A video shows spiders waving their tiny legs in the air after hatching at the zoo. In the wild, there can be up to 150 spiderlings in a single egg sac.
Also, if you want to taste these spiders, which are said to have a shrimp-like taste, you might consider going to South America.
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