Hawaii Fact 24 of 50: Hawaii’s Endemic Happy Face Spider

It’s hard not to be happy when you’re in Hawaii. Even Hawaii’s own spider exhibits that theory. The Hawaiian Happy Face Spider is constantly flashing an extremely content smile.

Here are some facts about this unique spider:

• The Happy Face Spider is endemic to Hawaii, which means it’s not naturally found anywhere else in the world.
• This spider is found on the islands of Oahu, Maui, Molokai, and on Hawaii’s Big Island.
• They live in the rainforest areas of Hawaii.
• They are non-poisonous.
• Theridion grallator is the scientific name of the Happy Face Spider.

Have you seen this spider during your travels to Hawaii? Even as much as I like to hike in the rainforest regions, I’ve still not seen one. That might be a good thing, though. I confess to being a scaredy cat when it comes to spiders.

For more information on this spider, see these articles:

• National Geographic
• Wikipedia

Photo credit: Darlyne Murawski for National Geographic.