Let’s also begin by remembering that spiders are not insects, but animals. These eight-legged and eight-eyed creatures are among the most conspicuous and well known animals on earth. Their reputation has less to do with their behavior than with their appearance.
Only a few species of tarantulas are significantly venomous. In fact, there is no recorded tarantula bite that's caused a human being more than a few days of pain. Unless hunting for a meal, itself, the tarantula seems to want to avoid venomous biting if at all possible.
Imagine you attack and “corner” a tarantula. Then, you reach out to grab it. (I know! I know. I said imagine it! It’s not something any sane human being would do.) First, this large brown hairy spider would face you and rear up waving it's front two (of its eight) legs in the air. This is supposed to chase you away. But let’s say you continue to reach for the giant spider.
The spider will display its fangs. It has two big fangs and, if you had any sense, you’d turn and run away. But, for the sake of this example, let’s pretend you don’t and continue to threaten the spider. It will, then, fling some of the short hair from its body in your direction. This is something like the spider equivalent of kicking sand in your face. These small hairs can be mildly irritating, but that’s about all.
Undaunted,
you reach out to grab the tarantula. It bites you! But, surprisingly, it’s too early to worry
about the effects of the venom because you haven’t been “venomized.” Tarantulas can give “venomless” bites. Such bites are used in confrontations with
other animals. Tarantulas save their
venom to use on their next meal. You are
just an attacker and, in fact, probably aren’t “venom-worthy” to this
tarantula.
Is there any way you can get a venomous bite? Yes, but you have to not only grab the tarantula, but this large spider must also be cornered – have no path of retreat. Surprisingly, through every step of this confrontation, the tarantula would have been likely to turn and run away if it had a clear path or retreat. It’s not that this arachnid is a coward. The tarantula is just spoiling for a meal, not for a fight.
On the other hand, the tarantula has a rather surprising group of predators that like to make it into a meal. The tarantula’s worst enemy is a wasp – and not a particularly big wasp. The Hemipepsis ustulata wasp has earned the name “tarantula hawk” in South America. These flying insects sting tarantulas. Then, the wasps lay their own eggs in the body of the dying arachnid. The hatching wasp larvae use the body of the dead spider as a food source.
Human beings eat tarantulas. These spiders are considered a delicacy in Venezuela and Columbia. They are first cooked over an open fire to remove their hair. Then, preparation is completed by baking or broiling the arachnid “to perfection.” When eating at a restaurant featuring Venezuelan or Colombian cuisine, you might want to get the translation of any unrecognized dishes on the menu. At least, that's what I would do. I really can’t get used to the idea of chowing-down on roasted tarantula.
Although most tarantulas eat insects and very small animals, the South American variety sometimes go after bigger prey. A lot of their fearsome reputation comes from the fearsome names they’ve earned in that part of the world. When you get the name, the “Goliath Bird-eater,” your reputation as a dangerous predator is bound to soar.
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