Largest Spiders by Leg Span
The largest spiders by maximum leg span, in centimetres. The giant huntsman spider of Laos spans up to 30 cm - about the size of a dinner plate - narrowly beating the bulkier Goliath birdeater, the heaviest spider in the world.
About This Dataset
Largest Spiders by Leg SpanThe giant huntsman spider (30 cm) and Goliath birdeater (28 cm) top the list, illustrating two different builds of giant spider: the huntsman is long-legged and spindly, spanning wide despite a modest body, while the Goliath birdeater is the heaviest spider alive, packing far more mass into a slightly smaller span. The Brazilian salmon pink birdeater (26 cm) follows closely, and the remaining tarantulas cluster around 15-20 cm. All the true giants are tropical, thriving in warm, humid rainforests and caves where abundant prey and stable temperatures support their large size. The narrow spread at the top - barely a few centimetres separating the record-holders - shows how close these species are to the practical size ceiling for a land-dwelling, air-breathing arachnid.
Key Findings
Auto-computed highlights from this dataset
Largest Spiders by Leg Span
Data Insights
Numbers, trends & sources behind this chart
What This Data Shows
Auto-generated trend summaries per category
Data Sources & References
All external sources cited in this dataset
Related Charts
More statistics on similar topics