Chicken Eating Spiders ... and fried spiders don't taste like chicken Archives

Chicken Eating Spiders ... and fried spiders don't taste like chicken

By day Martin Nicholas is an ordinary guy. But by night he becomes the Spider Man, a nickname he's earned because of the hundreds of spiders which share his tiny flat in Bracknell. Martin has circled the world seeking out the most enigmatic individuals of the 35,000 spiders known to exist...the tarantulas.

Now he is in Peru searching for a contender for the title of Biggest Spider in the World, currently held by the 11 inch Venezuelan Goliath Birdeater. Martin's quarry is an un-catalogued species. It is called the Chicken Eating spider because eye witnesses claim to have seen it dragging chickens into its burrow on the edge of jungle clearings. Estimates put it at around 10 inches from one hairy foot to another.

"On the hunt for 'The Biggest Spider in the World'!", BBC Science