Fear Not the Spider Invasion
Have you heard? There’s a spider invasion expected along the East Coast. However, it comes with a bit of good news: Experts say you don’t need to worry about the bright yellow, blue, black and red Joro spider.
A University of Georgia entomology professor says the spider doesn’t pose a threat to people or animals. Instead, the Joro is one of the few creatures that prey on stink bugs, which are a significant problem for southern crops.
"It constructs a huge web," says Dr. Nancy Hinkle, professor of entomology at the University of Georgia. "This web, incidentally, collects anything that flies around it, which means they are no longer presenting a threat to our crops."
Native to Asia, the species mysteriously showed up stateside around 2013. The Joro spider has since thrived, and it’s relatively common to spot in Georgia and the Southeast these days.
A study published in the Royal Entomological Society compares the Joro spider with the golden silk spider, which moved to the Southeast about 160 years ago. The golden silk spider hasn’t been able to spread due to its susceptibility to cold. Despite their similarities, the study found the Joro spider has about double the metabolism, has a 77% higher heart rate and can survive a brief freeze compared with its relative. These findings mean the Joro spider functions better than its relative in a cold environment — and that means it can likely survive outside Southeast.
