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I know this one only as rain spider. Is it one and can it do harm to humans? I was once bitten by a violin spider and almost lost my left leg. It took me months to recover. The venom ate a hole in my knee and shin and fortuantely I neither lost the toe it bit. Don't wanna take any chances here...


This one makes my wife scream and jump around and onto the couch.


This one makes me join my wife...

No doubt in my mind that it is a rain spider. Harmless creatures but I have to agree - quite creepy. We have lots of them during summer. Always catch them in a container and take them out of the house (probably to be back the next night - it seems).

The last house I lived in had one of those huge ones; it got so tame it used to come out and watch tv with me, was kinda cute.....then I went away for a while and forgot to tell the lady who stayed in my house about my "housemate"

My dad used to joke that those spiders ate small buck

WTM, I heard that all spiders are venomous,to humans that is, but that it is not easy, or even possible for many of species to bite us. Have also been horribly bitten by spiders a few times, usually end up out cold for a day or two under medication

1. Rain Spider
2. Chrsitmas Beetle
3. Centipede

...wtm, from the text I was getting a bit concerned as to what I would see while the downloaded pics arrived !, mindful that this site is family-friendly .

Anyway, I would agree with Craigsa on that id.

Cool,
w

Although many spiders are not venomous to man they leave a nasty bite wound with serious secondary infection due to dirty mouthparts

Whats up with all the creepy crawlies .

These are my worst - red romans ,
they always like to camp under my groundsheet

http://www.museums.org.za/bio/arachnids/solifugae.htm

Where I lived in Botswana we called these "Kalahari Ferraris" - cos we were in the Kalahari, and they were red, and very very fast. Quite nasty too - sore bite, but no venom. Had the pleasure of one trying to bath with me once.

I think I must wait for our next Parktown Prawn invasion, the scourge of Northern J'burg.
That can be added to the list of crawling terrorists. Not even my cats want to take them on

That is so interesting. So my shrimp cocktail, my spider phobia and my mite allery have a common "root".
Its like the eliies and the dassies

OK, not my best photographic efforts - taken a few years ago on a simple digital point and shoot, or via the stills feature of a camcorder.

The first 3 photos are of a very impressive creature - one of the largest insects you are likely to see in the Kruger, only seen in the heat of summer, and one of the most vicious! DON'T put your fingers near this one if you should meet one!

Richard

Does anyone know what the second last 1 is actually called .

They seem to be a plague in the park around this time of the year , from satara up to about mopani normally .
They seem to be a sort of flightless grasshopper/locust.

We call them sketzie buggs , duno if this has any scientific basis or not

Some more nastys , erm , interacting

Bucky, I posted an old pic of something similar which others IDed as possibly an armoured ground cricket. This looks like the same critter.

Really enjoyed your 'interacting nasties' bucky!

Thats them , great stuff .
They are actually pretty spooky when there are gazillions about , my cousin got poked by 1 that got in his sandal somehow , and he was really ill the next day , although that may have been from the evenings festivities (We had booked out balules huts in full , sitting around a big fire watching the hyenae and civits go past , awesome stuff.)