Watch your step! Tarantula love lures big spiders onto L.A. County hiking paths

Watch where you’re stepping while hiking in the Santa Monica Mountains near Los Angeles this month. There may be an extra pair of legs (or four) on the path.

It’s the beginning of tarantula mating season, and the males are on the prowl.

According to the National Park Service, those big, furry arachnids that call the American Southwest home will be spending the better part of September and October weaving their webs of love just above ground, outside the female’s burrow.

Because females typically stay inside, if a hiker comes across a tarantula on a footpath, it’s probably a male on the lookout for a mate, experts say. Males have been known to search for up to four miles to find a female.

Though they have fangs and carry poison, tarantulas are not considered a serious threat to humans.

Regardless, park officials are urging hikers not to interrupt the spiders’ ritual. They move slowly so hikers can take pictures, but humans shouldn’t touch or otherwise harass the tarantulas.

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