Parachuting Spiders On Their Way To Canada

Murder Hornets, Spongy Moths (formally known as Gypsy Moths), and now parachuting spiders.

Joro Spiders are about the size of a palm on the average hand, are yellow and black-blue with red on them and use their webs like parachutes to travel to new locations.

The invasive spiders have taken over most of the eastern coast of the US since 2013 and are looking to move onwards and upwards in a literal sense.

Joro’s are part of a group of spiders known for their large, golden coloured webs. They also like to use webs like parachutes.

The University of Georgia stated in a press release that the Joro spider belongs to a group of large spiders known as golden orb-web weavers that make enormous, multi-layered webs of gold-coloured silk. The arachnids can be beneficial to it’s local environment as they help with mosquitos and eat brown marmorated stink bugs which plague farmers crops.

Joro’s have only been studied a little but and prove to have faster heart rates and higher metabolisms which can help them survive cold temperatures, thus making them a likely candidate to survive Canadian winters.

According to an article from the University of Georgia “The spiders are relatively harmless to people and pets, making their presence more of a nuisance than dangerous. Joro’s won’t bite unless cornered, and their fangs are often not large enough to break human skin”

If you see one in your yard, or on a trail, there’s no need for violence one can simply carry on about their day as they will theirs.