Nature & Environment

Large, invasive spider species has spread across Mississippi and beyond

By T.K. Randall
March 14, 2026 ·  68 comments

Image: Joro Spider - Trichonephila clavata
Credit: Christina Butler / CC BY 2.0 (adapted) The species - known as Trichonephila clavata (or the Joro-spider) - is native to Asia and can be most commonly found across China, Japan, Korea and Taiwan.

Since the 2010s, however, these spiders have started showing up in the United States as well.

First discovered in Georgia and South Carolina, the species has since been rapidly spreading across Mississippi, as well as other neighboring states, and is showing no signs of slowing down.

Its effect on the local ecosystem remains unclear, although it has been observed catching and eating species of invasive insect that native species of spider have typically avoided.There is good news when it comes to interactions with humans, too, as the Joro-spider is not known to be particularly dangerous to humans, with its bite resembling little more than a bee sting.

Even so, it remains unclear exactly how much further across the country these spiders will spread.

"It looks like Joro spiders are not going to shy away from building a web under a stoplight or an area where you wouldn't imagine a spider to be," said the University of Georgia's Alexa Schultz - co-author of a recent study on the subject.

"I don't know how happy people are going to be about it, but I think the spiders are here to stay."

Source: Earth.com | Comments (68)

Tags: Spider