🕷️ Central American Wandering Spider (*Phoneutria depilata*)
Central American Wandering Spider (Phoneutria depilata) is one of the animal species documented at Yuyo in the Caribbean lowlands of Costa Rica.
🔤 Name English / nombre español / Name Deutsch
Central American Wandering Spider / Araña errante centroamericana / Zentralamerikanische Wanderspinne
⚠️ Identification note: This species identification is considered probable, but not fully certain. We welcome additional information or corrections from biologists and other experts. Please contact us if you can help confirm the identification.
🔬 Taxonomy & conservation
Family
Ctenidae — wandering spiders
IUCN status
NE — Not Evaluated
ⓘ What does this mean?
About the IUCN Red List
The IUCN Red List assesses the global risk of extinction of species using criteria such as population size and trends, geographic range, and the degree of population decline. The category shown here describes conservation status — it does not indicate whether an animal is dangerous to humans.
EX Extinct · EW Extinct in the Wild · CR Critically Endangered · EN Endangered · VU Vulnerable · NT Near Threatened · LC Least Concern · DD Data Deficient · NE Not Evaluated
🌿 Habitat & Ecology
Local distribution & habitat
Found in Costa Rica.
GBIF occurrence evidence around Yuyo
Costa Rica: 703 GBIF records
Within 5 km: 8 records
Within 10 km: 20 records
Within 25 km: 32 records
Within 50 km: 36 records
Nearest GBIF record: 1.5 km away · human observation
Photo from Yuyo
Diet & ecological role
A broad diet consisting predominantly of arthropods and, to a lesser extent, small vertebrates, including geckos and frogs.
Behavior
A ground-dwelling predator. Females produce 430–1,300 eggs per egg sac; spiderlings emerge after 28–34 days, and sexual maturity occurs after 14–17 molts and 300–465 days.
⚠️ Risk & safety
Risk Level
Highly venomous / potentially lethal
📍📈 Local frequency
occasional
Occurrence pattern
stable
📖✨ Stories
Stefan K.: Observations of Phoneutria depilata
On September 16, 2026, I encountered a fairly large Phoneutria while walking around the property. Adrián, who was working nearby and had a smartphone with him, took a short video of the spider. This is the individual shown in the linked YouTube video.
The photo, however, is from an earlier encounter in our studio. On that occasion, another fairly large spider was sitting on my backpack. We caught it using a large glass jar and showed it to our neighbor, a biologist and herpetologist who happened to be leading a snake tour at the time. He identified it as Phoneutria depilata. He also told us that bites can be extremely painful and that the effects can last for quite some time, especially if left untreated.
On average, I encounter one of these spiders about three or four times a year. We released the spider from the earlier studio encounter about 100 meters away.
The second photo documents another encounter outdoors on the property in September 2024.
On average, I encounter one of these spiders about three or four times a year.
🎬 Related videos
📷 Photos
