Jumping spiders are amazing little creatures. Not only are they cute in appearance but jumping spiders are also adorable in the way that they move (maybe not so much if you have arachnophobia).
Here at SpiderAnatomy.com, we find jumping spiders to be the cutest little spiders in the world. They are by far the most popular in our eyes (sorry tarantula lovers).
Since jumping spiders are so cute and adorable, some people wonder if there is any danger for humans when interacting with these loveable creatures.
Do jumping spiders bite? Are jumping spiders aggressive or dangerous?
These are typical questions that are usually discussed…well, after all the discussion of how cute jumping spiders are.
Wonder no more because all the answers to your questions are laid out below. Let’s get started!
Can Jumping Spiders Bite?
Yes, jumping spiders can bite. They have a pair of appendages known as chelicerae on the front of their bodies just below the eyes. These appendages are considered the mouth of a jumping spider.
The chelicerae are made up of segments including fangs and venom sacs.
Jumping spider fangs are almost pincer-like and are used to hold and crush prey while the venom sacs store the venom jumping spiders use to inject into their prey to paralyze and liquefy them before eating (sucking the juices out of the liquified insides of their prey).
Can jumping spiders bite humans? Of course, jumping spiders can bite humans but they typically aren’t a danger to humans and are pretty harmless.
Let’s take a look at instances where a jumping spider may bite a human.
Do Jumping Spiders Bite?
Jumping spiders do bite when defending themselves against a perceived threat and when they are being hurt. Jumping spiders don’t typically bite people unless they feel threatened or they are getting hurt in some manner.
Feeling threatened is subjective and can be a lot of different things.
Some jumping spiders may bite if you try to pick them up, but most will definitely bite if they are being squished or are being hurt by you (whether by accident or on purpose).
While some jumping spiders can be tame enough to be a pet, jumping spiders are wild creatures and don’t comprehend or have the capacity to understand how to be friends with you.
Although some may be docile or tame enough to allow you to handle them, most jumping spiders won’t like being handled and may bite if they take it as a threat when you try to pick them up.
Instead of touching a jumping spider, you may be able to get away with giving it a little nudge when you want it to move.
You may also be able to get a pet jumping spider to walk on your arms and hands if you stay still enough, just don’t squish the little guy and he probably won’t bite you.
Are Jumping Spiders Aggressive?
Jumping spiders are very aggressive in the wild when hunting prey. However, jumping spiders are not aggressive toward humans and would rather avoid humans than confront them when they are scared.
Jumping spiders are curious little creatures and people usually mistake this for jumping spiders being friendly toward us.
While they aren’t necessarily friendly, they aren’t aggressive either.
Jumping spiders have more of a curious nature than many other spiders. They actually want to see what’s going on around them instead of hiding in a corner or behind a bookshelf.
This comes off as friendly to humans because most don’t run and scamper off when interacting with us unless they get scared.
It doesn’t hurt that they are much cuter than other spider species either.
Are Jumping Spiders Dangerous?
While jumping spiders can bite and do carry venom to inject through their bites, they are not dangerous to humans. Jumping spiders don’t carry enough venom at a high enough potency level to be dangerous to humans.
Jumping spiders are typically not dangerous to your pets either.
However, this may not be the case if you have small pets like insects and some small species of amphibians and reptiles like frogs and geckos.
Regal jumping spiders actually hunt small amphibians and reptiles in the wild, so they can be a danger to similar pets.
All jumping spiders eat insects in the wild, so it is important to watch your pet insects if they are around a jumping spider.
For the majority of us – jumping spiders are cute and harmless little creatures that pose no serious threat inside our households.
Can Jumping Spiders Kill You?
Jumping spiders are not capable of killing a human being. It is true that jumping spiders carry venom and use their fangs to sink into their prey and inject venom, but jumping spiders are small and don’t pack enough venom to cause any serious issues for a human being.
There are no known records from history that present any species of jumping spiders as a danger to humans. There are no known recorded deaths or serious illnesses reported from around the world.
What does this mean for you? You shouldn’t be afraid of jumping spiders because they won’t cause you any harm.
You shouldn’t kill one in your home either because they can help rid your home of pesky insects.
Jumping spider bites are less severe than most insect bites and stings, so there’s really nothing to worry about with these adorable little spiders.
Jumping Spider Bite Symptoms
When jumping spiders bite there is usually nothing to worry about from a medical perspective. When jumping spiders bite humans, it shouldn’t cause any immediate or long-term medical issues.
Symptoms of a jumping spider’s bite include redness and itching around the affected area where the bite occurred. Some slight swelling may also occur around the bite, but this is usually mild at worst.
In most people, symptoms will go away or subside within a few days to a week after the initial bite took place.
Most Venomous Jumping Spiders
While there are no jumping spiders that pose a significant risk to humans, you may still be wondering which jumping spiders carry the most potent venom to use on their prey.
Most jumping spiders have around similar amounts of venom stored in their venom sacs. Since they are smaller spiders, no jumping spider species are extremely venomous or dangerous to humans.
However, the red-backed jumping spider often gets confused with the deadly redback spider.
These are two totally separate spider species but often their identities are confused by people because of their colors.
Redback spiders are very venomous and dangerous to humans, so it is best to not misidentify the two spider species because a redback jumping spider bite is harmless while a redback spider bite can be deadly to humans.
The pictures above this section are of deadly redback spiders so you can distinguish the difference between red-backed jumping spiders and redback spiders.
Recap
To recap, jumping spiders can and will bite humans or other animals if they feel threatened or are being squished or hurt.
When jumping spiders bite, there are usually no ill side effects from the bite other than some redness, itchiness, and possibly slight swelling – but nothing major is going to happen like death or serious illness.
You won’t die from a jumping spider bite. Jumping spiders are not dangerous to humans because their venom isn’t potent enough or in a large enough amount to do any damage to a human.
Jumping spiders are not dangerous to most pets as well unless you have smaller pets like insects or small amphibians and reptiles.
I hope you enjoyed this article and learned that when jumping spiders bite you or your pets, there is nothing to worry about in most cases.
If you liked this article, check out more articles in our spider parts or spiders vs humans section.
