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Originally Posted by dirty harold
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Yes this is true. They are also known as "camel spiders," "wind spiders," and even "wind scorpions." Because they favor scorpions and spiders (but are actually neither), they have been given several names and monikers.
Here is a picture of one:
The one they had in the house there appeared to be very young, as the adults I've seen in videos are larger.
The two pincers you see are controlled separately and are attached to muscle-like jaws that sort of move on their own. So for example, one pincer goes out and closes, then comes back in, and the second pincer then follows, almost as if they are cycling back and forth. It uses them obviously tear apart and grip prey.
They are neither spiders nor scorpions from what I understand. They are also not venomous like scorpions, but pack a very powerful bite and can be seen on YouTube killing small lizards and even mice. They are found in desert environments and have really become infamous because they are found in Iraq and the rest of the Middle East where our troops are stationed. There have been some stories such as them killing camels, chasing you, hissing and screaming, and so forth, but most if not all of these have been completely dispelled.
I apologize to go off on a "Discovery Channel" rant, but I just thought I'd shed some light on these fucking awesome and intimidating-as-all-hell creatures. God sure got creative with these ugly little buggers. Here is the wiki page that goes over more vague details about them:
Solifugae - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
