The 2025 Joro Spider Spotting Contest is underway, inviting participants to report sightings and submit photos of Joro spiders until Oct. 12.
The contest is held as part of Joro Watch, a monitoring program was developed by the Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health at the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, as part of the Southern Integrated Pest Management Center.
Participants can win fame, glory and exclusive stickers by entering their reports and photos into the contest database during this weeklong event. The contest aims to track the spread of Joro spiders this season.
To enter the contest, participants must submit their Joro Spider reports through jorowatch.org, eddmaps.org or via the EDDMapS app. Each report should include clear, well-focused photos of the spider.
The photo contest will judge entries based on image clarity, sharpness, composition, scientific value, and creativity.
For more information, visit the contest web page.
The Joro spiders are a non-native species of spider from Japan and other parts of East Asia that has been in Georgia for several years now.
They can grow up to 4 inches, have bright yellow and black coloring and spin large webs. Also, they can “fly” on wind currents, allow them to spread out their web.
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