The Texas brown tarantulas have always scared me. They’ve got huge snake fangs, a knot of beady eyes, and more leg hair than an indigo girls concert. But when you actually crouch down and talk to a young fella like Clarence here, you get a different picture. He’s polite, shy, even a little nervous. And for good reason: he’s about to have sex for the first time.

Click here to read more about the Texas Brown Tarantula.