Huge spiders are coming to New Jersey

This isn’t the plot of a B-movie; it’s real. Extremely large spiders are making their way up the Eastern Seaboard toward New Jersey.

According to the New York Post, they are Joro spiders from Asia and they can measure up to eight inches across, although males are smaller. They also make large, layered, intricate webs, and will eat anything that gets stuck.

While the arachnids are venomous, they pose little threat to humans as their fangs are too small to pierce human flesh. So, don’t worry about them, you might get creeped out by their size and their intricate webs, but they’re not going to hurt you.

Another piece of good news is that the Joro prefer to spin their webs outdoors, so they probably won’t be invading your home.

It’s believed that the spiders came from Asia via shipping containers.

José R. Ramírez-Garofalo of Rutgers told the Staten Island Advance,

Right now, we are seeing them dispersing into Maryland, so soon enough, possibly even next year, they should be in New Jersey and New York,’’ Ramírez-Garofalo said. “It is a matter of when, not if.

A unique feature of the Joro spiders is their practice of “ballooning”; they use their webs like parachutes, riding the wind for great distances.

Some other facts about Joro spiders:

🕷️ They are prolific breeders: A single female Joro spider can lay up to 3,000 eggs in a single year.
🕷️ They are excellent climbers: Joro spiders can climb smooth surfaces, such as walls and windows.
🕷️ They are cannibalistic: Joro spiders will sometimes eat each other, especially if food is scarce

First came the spotted lanternflies, now the giant spiders!

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Doyle only.

You can now listen to Deminski & Doyle — On Demand! Hear New Jersey’s favorite afternoon radio show any day of the week. Download the Deminski & Doyle show wherever you get podcasts, on our free app, or listen right now.

Click here to contact an editor about feedback or a correction for this story.