The folks over at Texas Parks and Wildlife Department posted this terrifying photo to their Facebook page Friday of a huge redheaded centipede.
Known as the Texas or Giant Redhead, this particular monster — with its long black body, yellow legs and red head — was discovered in Garner State Park in the Hill Country, reports USA Today.
The giant centipede preys on invertebrates but has been known to catch and eat lizards, snakes, toads and rodents. According to the Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine, their South American cousins have even been recorded catching bats and snatching flying bugs out of the air.
“They use their legs to grasp prey while feeding and their ‘fangs’ (actually an additional pair of highly modified legs) are capable of piercing the skin and injecting a painful toxin,” Ben Hutchins from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department wrote in TPW Magazine.
Thankfully, the nightmarish creature doesn’t pose a serious risk to humans and its bite is usually a sharp sting that can cause momentary swelling.
Still, you wouldn’t want to find one of these babies lurking in your shoe!
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Write to Helen Regan at helen.regan@timeasia.com