‘Like a scene from Arachnophobia’: large Joro spiders invade northern Georgia

Yellow, blue and red spiders, native to east Asia, thriving in warm weather and sending experts scrambling

Northern Georgia has found itself besieged by millions of large yellow, blue and red spiders, in scenes residents say bring to mind the movie Arachnophobia.

The Joro spider is an invasive species, native to east Asia, that was first spotted in Georgia in 2014. Since then, the 3in arachnid appears to have thrived in the warm climes of the state.