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8A I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I dawsonnews.com
Wednesday, June 22,2022
DAWSON COUNTY EXTENSION OFFICE
Your friendly neighborhood Joro Spider
DCN file photo
Joro spiders originally came to Georgia several years ago from China or Japan and have
quickly spread throughout a large portion of the East coast.
By Justin Loedding
Dawson County Extension Office
Summer Intern
It’s official, the Joro spider is
here to stay in North Georgia,
and there is not much that we
can do about them. The rela
tively large invasive spider spe
cies is easily noticeable by its
bright yellow and blue-black
stripes across its back and legs.
They originally came to
Georgia several years ago from
China or Japan and have quick
ly spread throughout a large
portion of the East coast.
Research has shown that they
are very similar to the “golden
silk spiders” and “banana spi
ders”, which are relatives in the
orb-weaving family, and have
been long adapted to the
Southeast United States. Joro
spiders will be very prevalent
over the coming months, but
they have not been found to
pose any real threat to humans.
These arachnids can stretch
up to four inches in length at
full size. They create large,
gold-tinted webs in trees, pow
erlines, and even around hous
es. One of the biggest notice
able differences between the
Joro and other similar species
is that they create larger, three-
dimensional webs, as opposed
to traditional two-dimensional
web structures.
As with most spider species,
they use these webs to catch
and immobilize prey. The Joro
species is special in that they
have been found to capture and
eat brown stink bugs, which
are known to infest houses and
damage crops. Very few other
species of spider local to the
region have the ability to cap
ture these pestilent bugs.
Studies have found Joro spi
ders to have nearly double the
metabolism and a 77% higher
heart rate than its orb-weaving
relatives, which means they are
better adapted to survive in
colder climates. This means
that they have the ability to
spread to larger geographical
regions and could potentially
survive throughout a majority
of the United States’ Eastern
Seaboard. Do not be surprised
if these insects start to move
further North into areas with
shorter growing seasons.
Although their population is
constantly growing, there has
been no evidence of any eco
logical threats posed to local
species or humans. Some
reports have been made of
hummingbirds being caught in
Joro webs, but they are usually
strong enough to escape the
web shortly after capture. As
with most orb-weaving spiders,
it is rare to be bitten by a Joro
spider and their fangs are usu
ally not large enough to break
through human skin. They pre
fer to flee when given the
chance, but it is not recom
mended to test the bite out for
yourself.
As we get later into the sum
mer and fall seasons, you will
begin to see this colorful spider
show up all around the place.
They will be on your trees, in
your gardens, and around your
houses. There is no solution to
prevent them from setting up
shop on your property, and any
efforts to remove them will
most likely be met with anoth
er web a few days later.
Although they could become
quite the nuisance over the
next few months, they are
harmless to pets and humans.
If a web is in your way it is
safe to remove if, but there is
generally no reason to go
around exterminating everyone
you see, as they will just come
back again later.
If you have any questions or
concerns about the Joro spider
do not hesitate to contact your
county Extension office for
information at (706) 265-2442.
FROM 1A
BOE
$48,160,362, giving an ending
fund balance of $11,002,950.
The board held a public hear
ing and presentation of the bud
get by Finance Director Beth
Covington during both its May
10 and June 14 meetings, allow
ing for members of the public to
see and comment on the sys
tem’s budget, its breakdown and
financial plans for the upcoming
school year.
At the June 14 meeting,
Covington reported minor
changes from the tentative bud
get presented in May. The reve
nue changes reflected a slight
drop in QBE (state) earnings,
and an increase in the state trans
portation allotment. Changes in
expenditures, she said, are main
ly due to changes in staffing,
such as promotions and posi
tions being filled within the sys
tem.
In addition to approving the
2022-23 budget, board members
also voted to approve several
proposed ESPLOST requests
that will be funded through the
system’s ESPLOST (Education
Special Purpose Local Option
Sales Tax) collections.
The approved ESPLOST
requests included managed
printing services and hardware,
desktop visualization project,
computers for growth, school
safety investments, and a new
gas convection oven to replace
the old one at Dawson County
Middle School. The total of all
five projects comes out to
$291,000 to be funded out of
ESPLOST collections.
Board members voted unani
mously to approve the
ESPLOST requests.
Up next, the board will set its
millage rate for the 2022-23
school year in August. In accor
dance with the law, the board
will hold three public hearings
about the millage rate in August
before voting to approve it.
