Solifugae

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A Solifugid (plural form Solifugae) is an arachnid belonging to the order Solifugae. The order is also known by the names Solpugida, Solifugae, Solpugides, Solpugae, Galeodea, and Mycetophorae. The order includes 900 known species, whose common names include "windscorpion", "sun spider", and "camel spider".

Most solifuges live in tropical or semitropical regions, where they inhabit warm and arid habitats. Some species however also live in grassland or forest habitats. The most distinctive features of solifuges is their large chelicerae. Each of the two chelicerae are composed of two articles forming a powerful pincer; each article bears a variable number of teeth. Males in all families but Eremobatidae possess a flagellum on the basal article of the chelicera. Solifuges also have long pedipalps, which function as sense organs similar to the insects antennae. Pedipalps terminate in eversible adhesive organs.

Solifuges are carnivorous or omnivorous, with most species feeding on termites, darkling beetles and other small arthropods. Prey is located with the pedipalps and killed and cut into pieces by the chelicerae. The prey is then liquified and the liquid ingested through the pharynx. Reproduction can involve direct or indirect sperm transfer; when indirect, the male emits a spermatophore on the ground and then inserts it with his chelicerae in the female's genital pore.

The name Solifugae comes from Latin and means (roughly) "flee from the sun", which they do. They are mostly active at night and seek shade during the day, a behavior which made coalition soldiers in the 2003 invasion of Iraq think these arachnids were attacking them. In reality, they were moving toward the newly available shade provided by the soldiers' presence. The absence of shade sends them away.

Myths

Solifugae are the subject of many myths and exaggerations about their size, speed, behavior, appetite, and lethality. They are not especially large or fast; the biggest have a legspan of perhaps 5 inches, and the fastest can run perhaps 10 miles per hour. They have no venom and do not spin webs. In the Middle East it is commonly believed that Solifugae will feed on living human flesh. The story goes that the creature will inject an anesthetizing venom into the exposed skin of its sleeping victim, then feed voraciously, leaving the victim to awaken with a gaping wound. Solifugae, however, do not produce such an anesthetic and do not attack prey larger than themselves. Due to their bizarre appearance and the fact that they produce a hissing sound when they feel threatened, many people are startled or even afraid of them. They will bite in self-defense when one tries to handle them, however, and due to the strong muscles of their chelicerae they can produce comparatively large, ragged wounds which are prone to infection.

Classification

There are thirteen families belonging to the order Solifugae:

External links

Snopes article on camel spider myths
National Geographic article on Camel Spiders
Camel Spider Blues (scroll down to the June 9, 2004 guestbook entry)
Camel Spiders
Video of Camel Spider