New Jersey Pest Control warns of incoming Joro Spiders with a leg span of up to 4 inches and the ability to glide on the wind.
The United States east coast is facing an invasion of bright yellow Japanese Joro spiders. Folks have already reported sightings in Alabama, Mississippi, the Carolinas, Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, Florida, West Virginia, Maryland, and Ohio. The invaders are expected to pop up in New York "any day now."
"What sets them apart, however, is their ability to fly, a trait uncommon among spiders," the company said. "While not accurate flight in the avian sense, Joro spiders utilize a technique known as ballooning, where they release silk threads into the air, allowing them to be carried by the wind."
José R. Ramírez-Garofalo, an ecologist at Rutgers University's Lockwood Lab and the president of Protectors of Pine Oak Woods on Staten Island, told SI Live that "it is a matter of when, not if" the spiders arrive in New York and New Jersey.
A peer-reviewed study published last October by invasive species expert David Coyle found that the invasive species is "here to stay." The arachnids are native to Asia, but were introduced to north Georgia around 2010, the study said, and are continuing to spread. Experts have warned that the spiders could spread to New York since 2022, but none have been detected – yet.
CBS News
Previously:
• Spiders blamed after broken siren played creepy nursery rhymes randomly at night to UK townsfolk
• Deadly showdown: Black widow vs. Venus flytrap
• Shy jumping spider cleans eyes in cute video
