bridgeport, W.Va (WDTV) — There’s been a lot of talk about a giant parachute spider invading the East Coast potentially making its way into West Virginia.
John Blaschke, 5, spoke to a WVU researcher to find out the facts about the so-called Zoro spider.
While spiders making their way into our kingdom may sound scary, it may not be a bad thing… or not nearly as dramatic as you might think.
Remember when Murder Hornets rocked the internet?
Well, now it’s Zoro Spider’s turn.
The Zoro spider, originally from Asia, has been found anywhere from Florida to North Carolina since 2013.
It has a sister species called the golden orb weaver that has lived in the area for hundreds of years.
But warmer temperatures may drive Zoro north in search of a cooler climate—and West Virginia fits the bill.
Vicki Kondo works in the Department of Entomology at WVU and says that although they are venomous, their pincers are actually tiny.
“It’s a very docile spider I know came from Korea and Japan who played with a zoro spider as kids, it’s not dangerously venomous so it’s nothing to be afraid of,” Kondo he said.
And as far as large adult zoros may go, they only grow a couple inches on average – their webs, on the other hand, can be quite large.
“Perhaps the most intimidating thing about this spider is that its web can be up to a meter or two in size and spread them between trees,” Kondo said.
But it can also be good news.
Kondo hopes their large webs will catch the invasive spotted lantern flies that damage crops in West Virginia.
Kondo said young spiders traveling by parachute web are actually very common but adult zoro are too big for it.
So you don’t have to worry about them falling from the sky.
No sightings have been reported in the state so far.
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