Kerala hosts a growing and notable community of spider researchers who are leveraging the state's rich biodiversity and the Western Ghats to study, catalog, and apply knowledge about spider species.

Researchers in Kerala are uncovering diverse spider life, including the fishing spider Dolomedes indicus in Wayanad and Lakkidi, which uses water-contact sensing and mild venom to capture its fish prey.

Kerala University researchers are compiling a spider inventory, studying taxonomy and ecology, and exploring practical applications such as rearing social spiders for natural pest control on farms, with successful trials in Kuttanad farms.

Venom research points to potential therapeutic insights against cancer at the molecular level, with in vitro studies on Stegodyphus sarasinorum venom informing future directions, though it is not a medical treatment yet.

The Rameshwaram ornamental spider Poecilotheria hanumavilasumica is critically endangered, facing habitat loss from urbanisation and deforestation, with researchers noting its limited global distribution and distinctive arboreal parachute behavior.

Social spiders such as Stegodyphus sarasinorum are being studied for their cooperative colony behavior, web-building, prey strategies, and their ecological roles as pest controllers and indicators of climate change.

Kerala will host the 23rd International Congress of Arachnology in Kochi from November 15 to 21, 2026, marking the first time India hosts the event, organized by Bharata Mata College and Devamatha College.

Spider webs are being explored as environmental DNA (eDNA) repositories, potentially revealing regional biodiversity and inspiring innovations in silk-based materials and engineering.

CATE researchers have named and documented Kerala-associated species such as Draposa sebastiani, Hindumanes wayanadensis, and Habrocestum swaminathan, along with rediscoveries like Micropholcus fauroti and Tetragnatha cochinensis, highlighting regional biodiversity significance and climate-change indicators.

Arachnology in Kerala began gaining momentum in the 1980s with P A Sebastian, whose work inspired a generation and led to arachnology-centered centers in the state, including PA Sebastian Centre for Arachnology Research and the Centre for Animal Taxonomy and Ecology (CATE).