According to the World Spider Catalog there are currently over 49'165 spider species known and accepted (2021). We know that they all have 8 legs and are mostly black with very thin legs. People with Arachnophobia would then classify their size between large, very large and monstrous. indeed some spiders can get very big e.g. the tarantula Theraphosa blondi can easily be larger than a human hand. Most of them, however, are harmless and very important for the ecosystem as spiders nourish themselves from annoying flies and bugs. Exceptions of spiders with a potential to harm humans include the species from the genus Latrodectus or Sicarius (see pictures above).

I have been collecting tarantulas since the age of 8, where my interests lie in old world tarantulas such as Poecilotheria, Cyriopagopus or Thrigmopoeus to name a few.

A piece of art created by Rinat Tattarin from Tomsk, Siberia.