you guys hear of this?
A true story. Source: the Australian Quarantine Inspection
>>>Service, Adelaide.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> A man and his family were on holidays in the United States
>>>and went to Mexico for a week. An avid cactus fan, the man bought
>>>a one-metre high, rare and expensive cactus there. On arrival
>>>back home Australian Customs said it must be quarantined for 3
>>>months.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> He finally got his cactus home. Planted it in his backyard,
>>>and over time it grew to about 2 metres. One evening while
>>>watering his garden after a warm spring day, he gave the cactus a
>>>light spray. He was amazed to see the plant shiver all over, he
>>>gave it another spray and it shivered again.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> He was puzzled so he rang the council who put him on to the
>>>state gardens people. After a few transfers he got the state's
>>>foremost cactus expert who asked him many questions. How tall is
>>>it? Has it flowered? etc. etc.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Finally he asked the most disturbing question. "Is your
>>>family in the house?" The man answered yes. The cactus expert
>>>said get out of the house NOW, get on to the front nature strip
>>>and wait for me; I will be there in 20 minutes.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Fifteen minutes later, 2 fire trucks, 2 police cars and an
>>>ambulance came screaming around the corner. A fireman got out and
>>>asked "Are you the bloke with the cactus?" I am, he said. A guy
>>>jumped out of the fire truck wearing what looked like a space
>>>suit, a breathing cylinder and mask attached to what looked like a
>>>scuba backpack with a large hose attached. He headed for the
>>>backyard and turned a flame-thrower on the cactus spraying it up
>>>and down.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> After a few minutes the flame-thrower man stopped, the cactus
>>>stood smoking and spitting, half the fence was burnt and parts of
>>>the gardens were well and truly scorched. Just then the cactus
>>>expert appeared and laid a calming hand on the bloke's shoulder.
>>>"What the hell's going on?" he says. "Let me show you" says the
>>>cactus man. He went over to the cactus and picked away a crusty
>>>bit, the cactus was almost entirely hollow and filled with tiger
>>>striped bird-eating tarantula spiders, each about the size of two
>>>hand spans.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> The story was that this type of spider lays eggs in this type
>>>of cactus and they hatch and live in it as they grow to full size.
>>> When full size they release themselves. The cactus just
>>>explodes and about 150 dinner plate sized hairy spiders are flung
>>>from it, dispersing everywhere. They had been ready to pop. The
>>>aftermath was that the house and the adjoining houses had to be
>>>vacated and fumigated: police tape was put up outside the whole
>>>area and no one was allowed in for two weeks.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> And here's what one of the b*stards looks like sitting on a
>>>FULL SIZE dinner plate
>>>
>>>
>>>
so how do bird eaating spiders grow to be so big inside a cactus? don't quite gel.
A true story. Source: the Australian Quarantine Inspection
>>>Service, Adelaide.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> A man and his family were on holidays in the United States
>>>and went to Mexico for a week. An avid cactus fan, the man bought
>>>a one-metre high, rare and expensive cactus there. On arrival
>>>back home Australian Customs said it must be quarantined for 3
>>>months.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> He finally got his cactus home. Planted it in his backyard,
>>>and over time it grew to about 2 metres. One evening while
>>>watering his garden after a warm spring day, he gave the cactus a
>>>light spray. He was amazed to see the plant shiver all over, he
>>>gave it another spray and it shivered again.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> He was puzzled so he rang the council who put him on to the
>>>state gardens people. After a few transfers he got the state's
>>>foremost cactus expert who asked him many questions. How tall is
>>>it? Has it flowered? etc. etc.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Finally he asked the most disturbing question. "Is your
>>>family in the house?" The man answered yes. The cactus expert
>>>said get out of the house NOW, get on to the front nature strip
>>>and wait for me; I will be there in 20 minutes.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Fifteen minutes later, 2 fire trucks, 2 police cars and an
>>>ambulance came screaming around the corner. A fireman got out and
>>>asked "Are you the bloke with the cactus?" I am, he said. A guy
>>>jumped out of the fire truck wearing what looked like a space
>>>suit, a breathing cylinder and mask attached to what looked like a
>>>scuba backpack with a large hose attached. He headed for the
>>>backyard and turned a flame-thrower on the cactus spraying it up
>>>and down.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> After a few minutes the flame-thrower man stopped, the cactus
>>>stood smoking and spitting, half the fence was burnt and parts of
>>>the gardens were well and truly scorched. Just then the cactus
>>>expert appeared and laid a calming hand on the bloke's shoulder.
>>>"What the hell's going on?" he says. "Let me show you" says the
>>>cactus man. He went over to the cactus and picked away a crusty
>>>bit, the cactus was almost entirely hollow and filled with tiger
>>>striped bird-eating tarantula spiders, each about the size of two
>>>hand spans.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> The story was that this type of spider lays eggs in this type
>>>of cactus and they hatch and live in it as they grow to full size.
>>> When full size they release themselves. The cactus just
>>>explodes and about 150 dinner plate sized hairy spiders are flung
>>>from it, dispersing everywhere. They had been ready to pop. The
>>>aftermath was that the house and the adjoining houses had to be
>>>vacated and fumigated: police tape was put up outside the whole
>>>area and no one was allowed in for two weeks.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> And here's what one of the b*stards looks like sitting on a
>>>FULL SIZE dinner plate
>>>
>>>
>>>
so how do bird eaating spiders grow to be so big inside a cactus? don't quite gel.
