WHY oh, WHY did I click on that link?!?!?!

Gonna have nightmares for a WEEK!

Broacher, I think THAT should be your avatar!

Well, it's a big insect, admittedly. But wolf spiders are still bigger, which makes them still bigger and creepier, as well as giant centipedes.

All this proves is that people named Moffatt (with spelling variations) are nuts.

*shudder*

looks like a big grasshopper. They don't scare me nearly as much as those camel spiders ... yipes!

Gah.

Cats love wetas. We're always finding dead ones in the back yard or being used as toys by our resident demon.

I think it's a weight thing. And, if we're sticking to technical details -- neither spiders or centipedes are insects.

Jld, I always wondered about the SF scenario where alien beings much, much, smarter than humans make a pitstop at our planet and inadvertently leave a stray pet behind--that then applies its considerably more evolved and vicious brain and cunning to vanquish humanity in a mere year or two.

* * * * *

"Daaad! I can't find Szlejnik!"
"Alright, where did you have it out last?"
"I think it was that little blue planet, third from that little star... Um, you know -- the star with the big planet with the pretty rings?"
"Well, it's too late now, that was six wormholes ago. I have to get this ship back to the rental yard."
"Waaaaaahhhh!!! It was just gonna bud, too!"
"Did it leave any poo spores in the back pod?"
"Sniff. Um... yeah?"
"Then don't worry, we'll grow you another one."

They should breed it to other large wetas and create a race of super giant wetas!

Its weird, I acknowledge that these could look creepy to people from other countries, but NZ school kids are taught from a young age that weta are cool rather than scary or dangerous. We have weta in our backyard. Though their size and mild temperament means that even our docile pet felines find them easy pickings.

The biggest one I ever saw was on our deck during a BBQ. Our flatmates family had just arrived from Brazil that day. Understandably, her mum freaked out, while the rest of us were like school kids on a science trip.