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A recent study shows what many entomologists have believed all along — the large invasive Joro spiders are not threatening native spiders.
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The study from the University of Georgia showed Joros eat some of the same insects as orb weavers, but their diets differed significantly.
Joros preyed on 26 unique species that the native spiders didn’t touch, including a variety of bugs such as leafhoppers and aphids.
Researchers know this because they analyzed the stomach contents of some 200 Joro spiders from 33 sites across the Southeast and compared DNA fragments to more than 140 native orb weavers.
“Native spider species had the same diet regardless of whether Joros were present in the area,” UGA said in a news release. “This finding suggests that Joros aren’t necessarily making it more difficult for orb weavers to find their favorite snacks.”
The concern was the already threatened local orb weaver population could suffer. Orb weavers are threatened by insecticides and pesticides.
Generally, entomologists say Joros are not as dangerous or as destructive as many of the invasive species across the state.
This is unlike marmorated stink bugs, which harm fruit trees, legumes, corn, garden vegetables and some ornamental plants. Or Asian longhorn beetles, which feed on maple, ash, poplar, sycamore, willow, elm and birch trees.
Or tegu, a particularly ugly lizard that eats anything.
David Coyle, associate professor of forest health and invasive species at Clemson University told The State previously that Joros are not “aggressive in any way, shape, or form,” but they are annoying.
You probably don’t even notice them until the fall when large females — sometimes an inch long — are around.
“They don’t have any impacts on people or pet health other than being really in-your-face, all over your house annoying,” he said.
Joro spiders, like many invasive insects, are from Asia and thought to have hitched a ride to the U.S. on a container ship. It was first seen in Athens, Georgia, along Interstate 85 and has been fairly commonplace in South Carolina for the past few years.
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Young spiderlings secrete strands of silk, 3 feet long or more, that get caught in the breeze and float the spider for miles.
It’s unlikely to bite, and if it does, the effect is less painful than a bee sting. Their presence is pretty obvious — their webs are three-dimensional, golden and measure about three feet.
They lay eggs in November and December before it freezes and the adults die in the winter. Sacs range from 400-500 eggs and the babies emerge in the spring.
Females can bite but likely won’t. They run away and hide. They will bite if you hold one too tightly, but here’s their super power — they’ll break off their legs and run away.
The best way to keep them off your property is using an acaricide used to kill ticks and mites or simply knock them from their web and smoosh them.
“In trying to kill the spiders, other beneficial insects feeding on pests in our yards will be impacted, and you’ll increase the likelihood of having a bunch of really difficult pests show up because you killed off some of the good guys out there,” said Jason Schmidt, co-author of the study and a professor of entomology in UGA’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
Like brown marmorated stink bugs, which will be trying to get in your house when the weather cools off. They destroy crops.
When disturbed — or crushed — these bugs release a sharp, foul-smelling chemical.
Or another invasive species, like the spotted lanternfly. Clemson University’s Department of Plant Industry says the spotted lanternfly has been found in Greenville and Seneca and calls it a “significant threat” to hardwood and stone fruit trees.
Originally from Asia, scientists believe it came to the United States on imported goods and was first seen in Pennsylvania in 2014.
Joros also eat flies, mosquitoes, aphids, leafhoppers, beetles, cockroaches, butterflies, moths, grasshoppers, bees, and wasps.
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