Afghanistan

If you’re in the desert in Afghanistan and a scorpion-like spider starts chasing you, don’t worry. It only wants your shade.

Many myths about camel spiders, or solifugids, aren’t true. They don’t eat camels, their bite isn’t dangerous, and most fit in the palm of your hand. What is true: they hide in the sand, use comb-like hairs on their legs to dig burrows, and yes—they can outrun most humans.

Once, while camping in the desert, I followed one with my headlamp and accidentally drove it straight into a nearby tent.

The people inside were not impressed.