2009 World's Hardest Creature- Group A- Land Beasts 2

[turienzo's lovechild]

Wolverine

Team ANT

Team SNAKE

Goliath Bird Eating Spider

African Bull Elephant

Tiger

Grizzly Bear

Komodo Dragon

 

[turienzo's lovechild]

thread title should read 'group B' of course

 

[Zesh Rehman]

Komodo Dragon, closest thing to a dinosaur

 

[Brian Fantana]

Team Snake - for the balls shown by this specimen.

BBC NEWS | World | Americas | Snake bursts after gobbling gator

He might have died in the end but who takes on an aligator and nearly wins?

 

[Nottseagull]

Komodo Dragon, closest thing to a dinosaur

But surely alligators and crocs etc are dinosaurs; had they died out, we would see their skeletons reassembled in museums as just another dinosaur.

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

Go team Ant.

If a nest of fire ants moved on any one of these other creatures in an attack they would have them all dead.

 

[Garry Nelson's Left Foot]

I'm torn between team's ant and snake and the goliath bird eating spider. Team snake just about nicks it though...

I'm surprised tpo see the grizzly and komodo taking an early lead. I URGE all voters to research the competitors!

 

[Zesh Rehman]

Team Snake - for the balls shown by this specimen.

BBC NEWS | World | Americas | Snake bursts after gobbling gator

He might have died in the end but who takes on an aligator and nearly wins?

haha! that snake is bloody massive

 

[MattBackHome]

Ant by a nose from the Elephant

 

[perth seagull]

A spider that can eat birds sounds well 'ard! The name alone makes it sound like the one to beat!

 

[turienzo's lovechild]

cor! this group is WELL close

could be a few upsets

 

[Garry Nelson's Left Foot]

A HUMDINGER of a contest, this one.

 

[Fazz62]

TL

I think your photo of the Goliath Bird Eater does not do it justice.
Thats why it is not in 1st place.

Possible therefore to replace the current pic with this one instead?

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2005/03/01/science/01spid.650.jpg

 

[m20gull]

TL

I think your photo of the Goliath Bird Eater does not do it justice.
Thats why it is not in 1st place.

Possible therefore to replace the current pic with this one instead?

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2005/03/01/science/01spid.650.jpg

But birds aren't exactly hard. They get taken out by little furry pussycats.

 

[vegster]

Its obviously a fledgeling that has fallen from a nest and the spider has just walked in to it......

 

[Taybha]

Ant music

 

[Fazz62]

Its obviously a fledgeling that has fallen from a nest and the spider has just walked in to it......

Vegster

Are you suggesting that the photo was "stage managed"?

Whilst on the subject of "stage managed" dont you think that this competition of "Hardest Animal" is also being "stage managed" by TL and GNLF?

As they have already decided the winners and are votes mean nothing.

If the Goliath Bird Eating Spider does not win, then it will be a bigger injustice then John Sargeant being allowed to continue in "Celebrity Come Dancing".

 

[turienzo's lovechild]

1 hour 20 minutes to go

if you don't want your favourite BEAST to CRASH OUT at the first hurdle then get VOTING

 

[turienzo's lovechild]

Whilst on the subject of "stage managed" dont you think that this competition of "Hardest Animal" is also being "stage managed" by TL and GNLF?

As they have already decided the winners and are votes mean nothing.

how on EARTH would we do that?!

 

[vegster]

Vegster

Are you suggesting that the photo was "stage managed"?

Whilst on the subject of "stage managed" dont you think that this competition of "Hardest Animal" is also being "stage managed" by TL and GNLF?

As they have already decided the winners and are votes mean nothing.

If the Goliath Bird Eating Spider does not win, then it will be a bigger injustice then John Sargeant being allowed to continue in "Celebrity Come Dancing".

let me shine a little light into your darkness and illuminate you, courtesy of Wikipedia...

The goliath birdeater is fairly harmless to humans, as are most species of tarantulas. Like all tarantulas, it has fangs large enough to break the skin of a human (1-2.5 cm). They do carry venom in their fangs and have been known to bite humans when threatened, but the venom is relatively harmless and its effects are comparable to those of a wasp's sting. Tarantulas generally bite humans only in self-defense, and these bites do not always result in envenomation (known as a "dry bite"). The goliath birdeater has poor eyesight and mainly relies on vibrations in the ground that they can sense from their burrows.


[edit] Behavior

Theraphosa blondi, adult femaleBirdeaters are defensive and may make a hissing noise when disturbed. This noise is called stridulation and is produced when the spider rubs the bristles on its legs together. Birdeaters can defend themselves by biting or by kicking urticating hair towards their perceived assailant. These hairs can be severely irritating to the skin and lungs, and have been reported to feel like shards of fiberglass.

Despite its name, the goliath birdeater does not normally eat birds. Rather, it eats mostly invertebrates such as crickets, mealworms and moths, as well as small vertebrates such as frogs, mice and lizards. If it does eat a bird, it will not spin a web in order to catch one, but instead climb a tree and find a bird's nest, then climb inside and flip upside down. The spider's brown color is almost identical to that of the nest, and when the bird returns, it lands directly in the spider's grasp, whose venom is strong enough to immobilize it. It was given its nickname by the first European explorers to witness one catching a bird in this manner. The Goliath birdeater is one of the few tarantulas which can capture and eat a full-grown mouse. While feeding, the spider will turn and leave a web barrier to prevent interruption from other animals