In the Middle East, it is common belief among American soldiers stationed there that Solifugae will feed on living human flesh. The story goes that the creature will inject some 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, like most creatures with any sort of survival instinct, they do not attack prey larger than themselves unless they feel they must, such as situations of defense or protection of young. 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. However, the greatest threat they pose to humans is their bite in self-defense when one tries to handle them. There is no chance of death directly caused by the bite, but, due to the strong muscles of their chelicerae, they can produce a proportionately large, ragged wound which is prone to infection. While one species, Rhagodes nigrocinctus, does appear to possess venom, its bite is not known to be dangerous to humans.

well, i've also read somewhere that the camel spiders aren't actually dangerous for humans, but it could be possible that they inject some serum which makes you not feel pain and makes your blood not coagulate. that's what some bats do, so you can basically bleed to death not even knowing it.

There is always the fact that your friend has her information wrong. I'm not saying she's lying on purpose - her uncle may have made a tongue in cheek joke that she took as fact without asking for more information. Why not ask your friend if you could talk to her uncle about it? It's always best to hear things straight from the horses mouth so to speak

My guess is that the uncle in question got hurt doing something stupid or in a vehicle accident, and lost part of his arm as a result, and now he tells a fanciful tale to protect his delicate pride. Unless you get a copy of his medical record, there is no way to legitimately "prove" he lies.

Wiki Entry

oh i know this thread very well, because it contains my very first post!!
linky poo for you:
http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/forum...ndpost&p=161999


Jen

Yes, it could be possible camel spiders do that. But they don't.

Well, seeing as this story was passed through various members of her family before it eventually reached her ears, I suspect it may have been a joke that got carried out too far. Still, she insists otherwise.
Unfortunately, I've never met her uncle. I have no way of knowing if he's the type who might lie about this.

Cool, dissent from Norway. The Vikings are attacking again! RUN!

The US also has camel spiders in the desert areas like Vegas and possibly some parts of California - solufigidae are among us!