If you suffer from arachnophobia you might want to look away now, as we explore the 11 biggest spider species in the world.
There are estimated to be over 46,000 species of spiders alive today, stretching their eight legs all across the world – in every continent and country except Antarctica. These many species come in all shapes and sizes, and a handful of the most venomous spiders can actually be very dangerous for humans, leading to death if bitten.
Spiders have been around for some 350 million years, and there’s a consensus amongst scientists that without spiders keeping insects in check that feast on crops the human race would face famine. Humans also benefit from spiders as fewer insects means fewer bites and less disease transmission.
With this context in mind, here’s our take on the 11 biggest spiders in the world, along with a picture and description, ordered by size of leg span.
Giant Huntsman Spider (Sparassidae)
Body size: up to 8 centimeters
Legspan: up to 30 centimeters
A giant huntsman spider at full stretch
Giant huntsman spiders have the largest leg span of all spiders. They are found only in Laos, but their slightly smaller relatives the huntsmen live in warm and temperate climates around the world.
The twisted, splays orientation of the huntsman’s legs can give them a crab-like walk, but these spiders are fast – a trait they use to hunt down their prey. Along with their speed, huntsmen are known as being particularly venomous – so much so that a human being bitten will likely require hospitalization.
Goliath Birdeater Tarantula (Theraphosa blondi)
Body size: up to 12 centimeters
Legspan: up to 28 centimeters
Goliath birdeater tarantula
The Goliath birdeater is the biggest tarantula in the world, and weighs in at around 175 grams, making it the world’s heaviest spider. Goliath birdeaters live in the swamps and rainforests of northern South America, though despite their name don’t frequently eat birds – more usually preying on invertebrates, mice, frogs, and lizards at night.
These spiders bite, and are able to deliver a venom that’s comparable to a wasp sting. For defense, they rub their hairs together to make a hissing noise able to be heard from a few meters away. When under threat they often rear up on their hind legs and show their fangs, or fire their barbed hairs at attackers with can lodge in skin or eyes, causing irritation for days.
Hercules Baboon Spider (Hysterocrates hercules)
Body size: up to 9 centimeters
Legspan: up to 28
centimeters
Hercules baboon spider’s close relative the king baboon spider
Hercules baboon spiders are native to Africa and famed as being enormous and aggressive, though haven’t been seen in the wild since 1900. At around this time, one was captured in Nigeria and can now be seen at London’s Natural History Museum. It’s thought their name is derived from the resemblance between their legs and a baboon’s finger.
Pictured is the Hercules baboon spider’s slightly smaller close relative the king baboon spider, which lives in East Africa, digging into grassland soil and weaving webs across its burrow entrance to catch prey.
Brazilian Salmon Pink Birdeater (Lasiodora parahybana)
Body size: up to 18 centimeters
Legspan: up to 25 centimeters
Brazilian salmon pink birdeater
Brazilian salmon pink birdeaters are found in the rainforests of Brazil, and while young are pink all over their body, hence the name.
Although these spiders are considered docile, when provoked Brazilian salmon pink bird eater can deliver a bite with their 2-centimeter fangs that’s comparable to a cat, with no venom that impacts humans.
They are quite common as pets as aside from their stunning looks they breed readily in captivity, and don’t spin large webs or burrow, so make good display tarantulas.
Grammostola anthracina
Body size: up to 16 centimeters
Legspan: up to 23 centimeters
A Grammostola anthracina on a branch
Grammostola anthracina belong to the tarantula family, and live in scrub, desert areas and grasslands in Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. Their diet consists of insects and small reptiles and invertebrates including beetles, moths, grasshoppers, lizards, cockroaches, and mealworms.
Like the Brazilian salmon pink birdeaters, Grammostola anthracina are popular as pets due to their looks, size, and behaviour. They are known to live around 20 years in captivity.
Chaco golden-knee (Grammostola pulchripes)
Body size: up to 15 centimeters
Legspan: up to 22 centimeters
Chaco golden-knee spider
The Chaco golden-knee is another species of New World tarantula, found in the grasslands of Argentina and Paraguay. They are burrowers rather than web makers, preying on insects smaller than themselves.
Even though they are one of the largest spider species in the world they are considered gentle giants, having a laid back, docile temperament. It’s still worth steering clear of handling them though, as their bite is comparable to a wasp sting.
Colombian Giant Tarantula (Megaphobema robustum)
Body size: up to 9 centimeters
Legspan: up to 20 centimeters
Colombian giant tarantula on the rainforest floor
The Colombian giant tarantula – also known as the Colombian giant redleg – lives in the Amazon rainforest of northern Brazil and Colombia. Although they’re not particularly venomous, these spiders are known to be particularly aggressive, commonly spinning and striking out with their spiked rear legs, so steer clear if you see one in the wild.
As with most other spiders on this list Colombian giant tarantulas live on a mix of whatever mice, small lizards, and large insects they can find.
Face-Sized Tarantula (Poecilotheria rajaei)
Body size: up to 12 centimeters
Legspan: up to 20 centimeters
Face-Sized Tarantula
The oddly descriptive face-sized tarantula is one of the few tarantula species not native to South America, but rather are found in old buildings and old-growth trees in Sri Lanka and southern India. They were only actually discovered in 2010.
Their bites are not deadly to humans, but their venom allows them to kill animals as large as mice, lizards, and small birds and snakes before eating them.
Camel Spider (Solifugae)
Body size: up to 7 centimeters
Legspan: up to 15 centimeters
Camel spider
Found in all warm deserts and scrublands in all continents except Australia, the camel spider is not actually venomous. Nor is it a spider, but it is an arachnid that looks ferocious and is the stuff of legends.
During the 2003 Iraq war of rumours started to circulate about the camel spider; a spider that ate camels and sleeping sodiers from the inside out. Thankfully the rumours were exactly that, and whilst camel spiders do use digestive fluids to liquefy their victims’ flesh, and have jaws one third the size of their 15 centimeters body length, they are not dangerous to humans. A very painful bite, yes, but no venom, and certainly no death!
Brazilian Wandering Spider (Phoneutria fera)
Body size: up to 5 centimeters
Legspan: up to 15 centimeters
Brazilian wandering spider on a leaf
Brazilian wandering spiders get their name from their behaviour of wandering around the jungle floor by night, and instead of having a web, resting in the day time in banana plants or termite mounds. Its Latin name comes from the Greek for murderess (Phoneutria), which suggests they are pretty deadly.
Brazilian wandering spiders are sometimes said to have the world’s most toxic spider venom, based on a study where mice were killed with an injection of just 0.006 mg of venom. Other sources suggest that only 2% of bites from these spiders result in the need for anti-venom as a treatment.
The truth is that the venom of the Brazilian wandering spider is extremely potent, but it’s not particularly good at injecting it into humans. Still, it’s definitely one to steer clear of!
Cerbalus aravaensis
Body size: up to 2.7 centimeters
Legspan: up to 14 centimeters
Cerbalus aravaensis in the Arava Valley sands
The Cerbalus aravaensis is an extremely rare species of huntsmen spider found only in the Arava Valley of Israel and Jordan. They are nocturnal sand dwellers who make their homes in sand dunes and the sand around salt marshes, constructing their den with a hinged cover made of sand and glue to disguise the entrance from predators.
This spider is the most endangered species on this list as its limited habitat is in imminent danger of destruction from agriculture and sand quarries.
And that’s your lot for our list of the world’s biggest spiders. Have you had the (mis)fortune to see any of these spiders in the wild? Please do share your experiences in the comments section below.
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