Arachtober is an annual celebration of spiders and other arachnids on social media. During the month of October, people worldwide share photos of spiders and other arachnids. It's a fun way to celebrate these often-misunderstood creatures and learn more about them. To participate, simply post your arachnid photos online throughout October using the hashtag #Arachtober.
The goal of Arachtober is just to have fun. If we are able to raise awareness of the beauty and variety of arachnids and help people dispel fears and realize most spiders are not dangerous, that is a welcome bonus. Participants often help identify each other’s photos and discuss new things they learned about arachnids.
Over the years, Arachtober has spread from Flickr to other platforms like Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and BlueSky. even catching the attention of scientists and arachnological societies. It is fun interacting with scientists, spider enthusiasts, and everyone else around the world participating in Arachtober. We are excited to help raise awareness about the important role spiders play in our ecosystem.
Arachtober started in 2007 as a friendly challenge between two photographers on Flickr, Joseph Connors (jciv) and Ashley Bradford (zxgirl), who decided to post daily spider photos. Another user, Jenn Forman Orth (urtica), later joined in and suggested the name "Arachtober," and it stuck! The event grew organically, attracting a community of arachnid enthusiasts.
From an abundance of spider photos, Joseph and Ashley's enthusiasm for spiders deepened. Joseph's interest in spiders and night photography led him to become a Texas Master Naturalist where he continues to share his knowledge of spiders, insects, and other creatures of the night. In addition to her artistic spider and insect macro photography, Ashley has developed an interest in birds and plants. Both are prolific iNaturalist users, helping to document and learn about the wildlife around them.
“It's Arachtober” by Eric Eaton (BugEric) on his Blog in 2010.
“Happy #Arachtober! Spiders Take Over the Web for Halloween” by Elizabeth Palermo on LiveScience in 2015.