Why camel spiders are not regarded as true spiders?
Camel spiders are not regarded as true spiders for 3 reasons: they do not have silk glands; they do not have any venom glands and they digest their food inside not outside their body. The bite of a camel spider is not venomous but can be very painful. Any bite should be cleaned and disinfected to prevent any secondary infection from taking place. A camel spider is actually a solpugid, and there are about 900 species of them known to date. Around 50 species of camel spiders are found in southwest US and about 240 in southern Africa. A Camel spider is also known as wind scorpion, sun spider, and wind spider. Sometimes, they are also called as “the sheep of the desert”. For thousands of years the camel has helped people live in the deserts of Asia and Africa. It can travel great distances over hot sands for days without water. It can carry a person or a load of freight. For this reason, it is sometimes called the “ship of the desert.
