BIG bug.

Arthropods are the creatures that have armor-like skin and jointed legs – the group that includes crawfish, scorpions, spiders and insects. The bugs. The largest arthropod currently crawling around Earth is Macrocheira kaempferi, the Japanese spider crab, which has a 2-foot long body and long, skinny legs stretching as wide as 13 feet.

Sure, it’s big, but a few million years ago, New Scientist reports, it would have been lunch. Researchers are investigating the remains of a prehistoric water scorpion that measured more than 8 feet long:

Researchers say the monstrous creature is the largest arthropod ever known – over 30 centimetres bigger than the previous largest specimen of the same species.
Simon Braddy at the University of Bristol, UK, and colleagues examined the 46-centimetre-long claw, found in a quarry in western Germany, and believe it belonged to a sea scorpion species called Jaekelopterus rhenaniae that roamed the ocean floors some 390 million years ago.

Some believe this giant creature became the ancestor of all modern, land-dwelling scorpions.

Say hi to grandma, kids.

Entered on 28 November 2007 at 6:34 in the Science file | 1 Observation | Print Print

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  1. [...] Claw Points to Monster Sea Scorpion”, New Scientist, 21 Nov 07, as mentioned in the post “BIG Bug,” 28 Nov [...]

    Pingback by The Guild of Scientific Troubadours » SONG: Jaekelopterus! — 26 December 2007 #

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