Rare wasp spider spotted in UK county for first time as experts issue warning

An expert from the British Arachnological Society has confirmed the large yellow-and-black spider is the first recorded sighting of the species in Cheshire. But conservationists say her discovery highlights the need to make space for nature.

The spider was spotted during a biodiversity survey of Chester Zoo’s estate. The discovery was made by Chester Zoo conservationists working with RECORD, Cheshire’s local environmental records centre.

The spider, nicknamed ‘Wendy’ by the zoo team, is among a number of species whose ranges are moving northwards as they respond to a warming world. They are 2-3cm across the body and spin ornate webs. They are completely harmless to humans.

Rosie Cooper, estate biodiversity assistant, made the discovery. She said: “When go out into the field, it involves a lot of walking, using a mixture of apps, wildlife identifying books and our own knowledge to learn more specifics about the habitats we look after.

“I was looking out for plant species and then I saw this big, stripy, brightly coloured spider. I have what you might call a healthy respect for spiders, so my first thought was ‘woah!’ But now I think it’s really cool to have found her.”

Ruby Merriman, Chester Zoo’s Estate Biodiversity Manager, said: “We were really thrilled to find Wendy. She’s a beautiful and fascinating species, and recording a wasp spider in Cheshire for the first time is really exciting.

“Wasp spiders are slowly moving north as their southern ranges in Europe warm too quickly for them to adapt. Some conservation organisations refer to animals driven to migrate by climate change as ‘climate refugees’ – which is a good term. They are moving because of human activity, and we need to make space for them.”

The zoo’s wider estate, which spans 205 hectares, includes wet meadows, ponds, reedbeds, species-rich grasslands, woodlands, orchards and hedgerows, supporting a wide range of wildlife. The zoo estate supports a range of key UK species, including harvest mice, which are listed on the IUCN Red List as Near Threatened, great crested newts and badgers. It is also a nesting site for barn owls and hosts dozens of dragonfly, moth and butterfly species.

Scott Wilson, head of field programmes at Chester Zoo, said: “It’s exciting to see new species like Wendy on site, but her arrival is part of a broader, more worrying trend. Our conservationists work across the world, and we are witnessing the impacts of climate change in real time, from droughts in Chile to floods in Indonesia. It is a major threat to biodiversity.”