Boxing gloves were nowhere in sight for a world spider heavy-weight title
challenge at the Natural History Museum last month.
The Hercules baboon spider, Hysterocrates hercules, specimen was collected over
100 years ago in Nigeria. Virtually nothing is known about this species but, in
common with other baboon spiders, it probably lives in a burrow in the ground
and comes out at night to hunt its prey.
Museum bug expert George Beccaloni was contacted by GWR life sciences consultant
Karl Shuker after reports of a possible rival. Karl asked George if he could
check the size of the Hercules baboon spider as the Natural History Museum has
the world’s only known specimen and George is the author of the Museum book, Big
Bugs Life-Size.
