I’m sure you’ve heard this: “How are you going to survive with all of the [insert any deadly creatures] in Australia?” I know I did. It happened so many times that it actually started to make me wonder, will I survive?
Australia is equally home to beautiful nature, and deadly creatures. Some of which include: spiders, crocodiles, snakes, sharks, jellyfish, scorpions and more. It’s also known that Australians have run-ins with these creatures, when they’re not expecting it.
In January 2019, a woman was bitten by a snake hiding in a toilet. The same month, another woman found a brown snake on top of her vehicle while picking up her kids from school. But, aside from these bizarre situations, Australians rarely have problems with these creatures.
It’s easy to wonder how Australian’s survive encounters with these creatures, but that’s essentially the best way to know you’ll be fine.
From my experience in the country and encountering snakes and spiders, I’m sharing some tips on what you can do and expect when coming across these deadly creatures in Australia.
The most important thing is, don’t panic—everything will be okay. Aside from a few encounters it’s unlikely you’ll ever be close enough to be bitten or attacked. I included what to do in case of a bite for many of these creatures, none of this is professional medical advice. This is just recommendations from the Australian Government’s Health information.
Table of Contents
Spiders
Easing into this list of surviving deadly creatures in Australia, are spiders. These are likely the most common creature you’ll encounter, but it’s less likely to encounter venomous ones. Spiders can be anywhere, I’ve come across just as many in the city, as in the bush.
The best way to avoid accidentally walking into a web, is just be aware of your surrounding and look around. Especially at night time as the web’s are hard to see sometimes. Overall spiders aren’t dangerous and leaving them alone is best. Also they have a job to do (eating bugs!) so try not to kill them.
The most common venomous spiders are the funnel-web and RedBack, but no deaths have occurred since 1984. If there are bites, medical professionals are equipped with anti-venoms. Australian Geographic says that bees are more deadly than spiders. The largest and grossest spider I see is the Huntsman, they’re known to grow up to 15 cm. Despite their size, they’re harmless as they can’t inject their venom.
What to do for a bite:
For most bites, apply a cold compress or ice bag directly to the bite to relieve pain, according to HealthDirect. Take a photo of the spider to show medical professionals, just in case. Seek medical attention if the bite shows signs of infection or other symptoms occur. For a funnel-web spider bite immediately apply a compression bandage to the bite, keep the limb down and don’t move. Call and wait for an ambulance.
Tip: Spiders can end up in vehicles. Car accidents have occurred from people getting scared of them while driving. It’s good to be aware of this and try not to panic while driving if it does happen.
Snakes
Snakes are likely the next deadly creatures in Australia you may encounter. These creatures aren’t naturally aggressive, so leaving them alone is best. The main reason people are bitten is when hunting snakes. Snakes can be intimidating though, aside from being small they’re very quiet and it could be your first time seeing one, ever.
If you see a snake, don’t panic. Stay still and the snake should retreat. Otherwise slowly walk the other direct. Aside from their size, pythons specifically aren’t very dangerous, especially to humans. At over a hundred species of snakes in Australia, only 10 could kill someone, but it’s not likely or common. The most dangerous are Taipans, Brown snakes, Tiger snakes and Black snakes, according to Healthdirect.
What to do for a bite:
Every snake bite in Australia needs to be taken seriously, call an ambulance immediately. The venom moves through your muscles so it’s important not to move. Apply a compression bandage or something to firmly bandage the bite. Even if bitten by a venomous snake, the venom may not have been injected as some snakes can control this. Don’t wash the area or clothes where the bite took place, until looked at by medical professionals.
Sharks
There’s so many movies, TV shows, and books about shark attacks, it may seem a shark is out to get you the minute you go in the ocean. This isn’t true and shark attacks rarely occur. Many Australians swim in the ocean every day without ever seeing a shark. It’s perfectly fine to swim in the ocean.
However, if you feel nervous, swim on patrolled beaches. Lifesaving services monitor for sharks along with rescuing people.
A few dangerous sharks in Australia include the Great White and Tiger shark. Just remember that there’s plenty of people in Australia that go snorkelling, diving, swimming and surfing in the water without any problems. However if there is a beach that is particularly at risk, there should be signs in the area, so just look around.
Jellyfish
Just arrived in Cairns, Queensland and surprised you can’t swim in the ocean? Jellyfish along with crocodiles are the reason for no swimming in the ocean along the northern region of Australia. Most common in these areas are Box jellyfish and Irukandji, which can kill people depending on the severity. The problem is you likely won’t see anything in the water. The Box jellyfish’s tentacles can get to 3m long, so those in the water will feel it before seeing it.
Bluebottle are another common jellyfish in Australia, but they’re all over the country. Usually winds blow them in from further out in the ocean. Stick to patrolled beaches if you’re worried about these, as lifesavers will put out signs if Bluebottles are around. The stings from the Bluebottle aren’t deadly, but still very painful. Beaches should have signs if jellyfish are known to be in the area.
What to do for a sting:
For Box jelly fish and other tropical stingers call an ambulance immediately and pour vinegar over the affected area for at least 30 seconds. Without vinegar available, use sea water and to take off remaining tentacles. For blue bottle and other stings, remove tentacles with hot water (as hot as your skin can handle) for 20 minutes or an ice pack, or sea water.
Tip: If there’s no signs warning of jellyfish or patrolled beaches around, but you really want to swim, check out the shore for and jelly-like substances. If there’s any on shore, it’s likely there’s some in the water as well.
Crocodiles
By far, crocodiles are the most real and scary deadly creatures in Australia. Not all crocodiles are equal though, the salt water are the most dangerous, but fresh water are nearly harmless. The salt water can get up to 6 m in length and have 64-68 teeth, according to the Northern Territory Government. They are also territorial and can feed on almost anything, which is why swimming in salt water crocodile habitats won’t end well.
Australia is vigilant with signs and other reminders about crocodiles. In the northern part of Australia it’s common to see these signs near most wetlands, rivers and the ocean. But with proper precautions, such as staying a distance away from the water inhabited by crocodiles (signs will have other suggestions) an attack isn’t likely.
So, will you die from Australia’s deadly creatures?
The short answer is: not likely. And, choosing against visiting or living in Australia because of these deadly creatures would be a mistake. The country is so diverse and big, many visitors may never encounter any of these deadly creatures during their stay in the country.
It’s good to be aware of the potential, but don’t let it be something that’s on your mind everyday—it’s really not necessary. After living in Australia for nearly a year I’ve seen more snakes and spiders that I wanted to, but I’ve never been bitten or close to it. It’s mainly because I’m outdoors a lot, but I would never stop doing bush walks because of the fear of dying from these creatures.
Also, I used to be a lot more scared of spiders before coming here, it does get more normal to see so many—but still terrifying at the same time. Where I’m from in Canada there’s equally as many dangerous wild animals, so I’ll take my chances enjoying Australia.
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