Almost everybody I know is terrified of spiders. Imagine going into your basement and seeing a giant poisonous spider that can parachute using their own webs; sounds like a nightmare, right? Soon, here in New Jersey, it’s going to become a reality.

The Trichonephila clavata also known as the Joro spider is a giant venomous spider that uses its webs to catch air currents to fly through the air in order to relocate itself. The Joro spider is projected to be the next invasive species in New Jersey… so watch out.

Before we start, I want to clarify what an invasive species is.  An invasive species is a species that does not belong in an ecosystem but was either accidentally brought there by a natural disaster or a weather phenomenon or was once pet and released.  The thing that makes the species invasive is the fact that they are not an original part of the ecosystem so they don’t have any natural predators. This means they have the possibility to have rapid growth and can cause large amounts of destruction.

The Joro spider originated from East Asia and has made its way through the deep south by using its “ballooning technique” which is when they put a string of silk into the air and let the wind carry them. According to North Jersey.com, the Joro spider can very well be inhabiting New Jersey in the coming year.

If you are worried about the spider causing harm to you or even your pet, don’t stress.  The spider is said to be very docile towards humans and larger animals, and their mandibles are not capable of breaking the human skin. You also do not need to worry about seeing them inside your house. The spiders prefer the outside and you will most likely see them either on your house, a tree or on the outside of man made structures.

Even though the spiders are not harmful to humans they can cause biodiversity issues as many invasive species do. They do this by eating all of the food that spiders that actually belong here would eat causing a decrease in their population. Overall, the arrival of the Joro spider may not bring the terrible monster that we are all imagining it to be, but only time will tell.