Members of the 1000 species strong huntsman spider family frequently reach tarantula-like proportions. They can be alarming fast too, moving in a unnerving crab-like fashion. They generally inhabit tropical areas with undisturbed woody places, which includes garden sheds and woodpiles! Luckily the most you'll get from one of these is a nasty nip. Huntsmans don't usually build webs, but can produce silk. The snail shell spider of Madagascar puts silk-making to extraordinary use, hauling empty snail shells up into a bush for refuge. This was filmed, probably for the first time, for David Attenborough's Madagascar series and can be seen below.

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