Subject: First time we have seen this!
Location: Southeast Idaho
October 8, 2016 1:31 pm
Hey bugman! This has been a year of first bugs for us in our neck of the woods. We had a beetle you identified for us earlier in the summer, and now we have discovered several of these in our home. Any help??
Signature: Christine
Dear Christine,
This is a Solifugid, a member of order Solifugae, a group whose members are frequently called Windscorpions or Sun Spiders. Here is a very similar looking individual from BugGuide. While Solifugids, Scorpions and Spiders are all classified together as Arachnids in the same taxonomic class, Solifugids differ from both Scorpions and Spiders in that they do not have any venom, but they are still fierce predators that will help keep your home and property free of other, less desirable, and potentially dangerous creatures. It is worth noting that Solifugids from the Middle East are called Camel Spiders and they are much larger than our North American species, and though they do not have venom, they can still deliver a painful bite. Many years ago we posted an image of two Camel Spiders that was widely circulated on the internet that caused much hysteria.
I think I found a sun spider do I have to worry about my sisters kittens they are very tiny still? Are they a hazard to chicks?
If you are in the Middle East where they are known as Camel Spiders, you might not want them near young chicks, but North American species are too small to be of concern.