Species Spotlight – Sun Spider

Galeodes sp.

Galeodes granti

Sun spiders are an arachnid from the order Solifugae. The sun spiders most found in the hobby belong to the Galeodes genus, along with almost 200 other species. These can be found in Northern Africa and tolerate extreme conditions.

In the wild, temperatures regularly reach up to 44°C, meaning sun spiders opt to burrow deep into the sand during the daylight hours. As such, they should be provided with deep substrate with an ambient temperature above 30°C. Keepers should create an arid enclosure with plenty of open sand and cork bark. Live plants can be used but expect that these arachnids will disperse substrate whilst burrowing, making them quite messy.

Their menacing appearance is matched by a whole string of obscure and unsettling traits. During the night, sun spiders will actively hunt scorpions. Some Galeodes species will also produce sounds by stridulation which may be an imitation of some viper species. Even the mating rituals of sun spiders are odd. The male will hold the female’s abdomen high in the air, before depositing his spermatogonia into her genitals using his mouth (chelicera).

Galeodes sp. have lots of common names including camel spiders, giant Solpugids and sun spiders. While there are lots of sun spider species that can reach more than 15cm, most animals in the hobby are imported as juveniles between 4 and 5cm in length. They are insectivorous and have a voracious appetite, regularly feeding on large crickets. They are cared for in a very similar way to most terrestrial scorpions but with higher temperatures. Their care requirements are reasonably straightforward and can be housed in a glass terrarium, providing all the necessary heating equipment is supplied. However, they should not be considered ‘entry level’ inverts as they are extremely fast-moving animals. In fact, it’s been reported that sun spiders can move at speeds of up to 10 miles per hour.