Run if you can: Australia’s giant huntsman may be the world’s fastest spider, new study suggests

If spotting a huntsman spider inside your home wasn't unsettling enough, new research suggests it may also be the fastest spider ever recorded. Scientists have found that Australia's brown huntsman (Heteropoda jugulans) can reach speeds of 3.59 metres per second (around 13 km/h or 8 mph), making it the quickest among 258 spider species analysed in one of the largest comparative studies of spider movement to date.

The findings come from an international team of researchers in Germany and the United Kingdom and are currently available as a preprint on bioRxiv, meaning they have not yet undergone peer review. Even so, scientists say the results provide important clues about how spider size and body mechanics influence speed.

Australia's brown huntsman outruns more than 250 spider species

To measure spider speed, researchers recorded 162 species using high-speed cameras as the animals ran across a gridded surface after being gently prompted with a paintbrush or another blunt object. They combined these observations with previously published data covering 96 additional species from Australia, Europe and North America.

The analysis showed the brown huntsman topping the list with a peak speed of 3.59 metres per second, surpassing well-known fast-moving spiders, including the Moroccan flic-flac spider, famous for its acrobatic rolling escape.

The study also found that spider size plays a crucial role. Rather than the largest or smallest species being the quickest, medium-sized spiders appear to hit the ideal balance between body weight and leg length, allowing them to run faster than both tiny web spiders and giant tarantulas.

A unique way of running

Dr. Christofer Clemente, an evolutionary biomechanics researcher at the University of the Sunshine Coast, contributed Australian data from his 2021 study that became part of the global analysis.

Unlike mammals, spiders do not rely solely on muscles to move. They extend their legs using hydraulic pressure while muscles pull the legs back in. This unusual system helps huntsman spiders generate rapid bursts of speed.

Clemente said his earlier research had already revealed that huntsman spiders were remarkably quick, but there had been no worldwide comparison to show just how exceptional they were.

Although 3.59 metres per second represents only the spider's maximum sprint over a very short distance, researchers noted that its average running speed also remained higher than that of other species studied.

Is it really the world's fastest spider?

Scientists are stopping short of making a definitive claim. The study examined only a small fraction of the nearly 53,000 known spider species, meaning an even faster species could still be discovered.

Researchers also note that identifying Australian brown huntsman species can be challenging because Heteropoda jugulans closely resembles Heteropoda cervina, and future genetic studies may help confirm exactly which species holds the record.

For now, Australia's huntsman has earned another reputation alongside its intimidating appearance: it may be the fastest spider scientists have ever measured.