Goliath Birdeater

The Goliath birdeater is the largest spider in the world by mass and body size, native to the rainforests of northern South America, with a leg span that can reach up to about thirty centimetres, roughly the size of a dinner plate. Despite its intimidating name and appearance, it very rarely eats birds, feeding instead mainly on ground-dwelling invertebrates and occasionally small vertebrates such as frogs, lizards and rodents, which it subdues with a venomous bite that is painful to humans but not considered medically dangerous. It lives in burrows in the forest floor, and when threatened it can rub bristles on its abdomen to release a cloud of fine, irritating hairs called urticating hairs, which cause intense itching and irritation to a predator's skin, eyes or respiratory tract, its primary line of defense before resorting to a bite. The species has become a popular, if unusual, exotic pet among tarantula enthusiasts, and it can live for well over a decade in the case of females.