Huge Invasive Spider Native to Asia Could Spread to Much of East Coast, Study Says

Researchers say a large spider native to East Asia that proliferated in Georgia last year could spread to much of the East Coast.

The Joro spider's golden web took over yards all over north Georgia in 2021, unnerving some residents. The spider was also spotted in South Carolina, and entomologists expected it to spread throughout the Southeast.

A new study suggests it could spread even farther than that. The Joro appears better suited to colder temperatures than a related species, researchers at the University of Georgia said in a paper published last month.

It has about double the metabolism, a 77% higher heart rate and can survive a brief freeze that kills off its relatives, the study found.

The researchers also noted that Joros are found in much of Japan, which has a similar climate to the U.S.

“Just by looking at that, it looks like the Joros could probably survive throughout most of the Eastern seaboard here, which is pretty sobering,” study co-author Andy Davis said in a statement.

The Joro — Trichonephila clavata — is part of a group of spiders known as orb weavers for their highly organized, wheel-shaped webs. Joro females have colorful yellow, blue and red markings on their bodies and can measure three inches (8 cm) across when their legs are fully extended.

It’s not clear exactly how and when the first Joro spider arrived in the U.S. or why they were so abundant in Georgia last year.

Although their impact on other native species and the environment is also not clear, some researchers believe they are benign. In previous reports, experts, such as Paula Cushing, an arachnologist at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science told the Associated Press that Joros are not a threat to humans or dogs and cats and won't bite them unless they are feeling very threatened. Their fangs are also said to be too short to break the skin, according to Axios.