Come to Australia…and get Killed!
This afternoon I had my first unplanned encounter with one of the most notorious and widely feared Australian creatures: an Australian spider.
I was hanging out the laundry: hang, peg, hang, peg, as you do, when out of the corner of my eye I spotted a glistening spider’s web at the end of the washing line. I froze and scanned my surrounding area. To my horror it’s proprietor was lurking at the end of the line, watching me, imagining my exotic tastie and about to bite me and kill me…maybe.
This didn’t sound much fun to me, so although he didn’t actually look like one of the nasties, I hung all the washing at the far end of the line like a big wimp and left him to his lurking, hoping he would go away, which now it seems, he has.
Deadly Wildlife
My brief encounter got me thinking about the concept of Australia’s dangerous wildlife. Some of Australia’s wildlife is indeed, the most venemous in the world, but how often does the average Aussie find them self munched by a funnelweb or taken by a taipan?
Not as often as those naughty Aussies would have us believe, not in my experience anyway. I love the Australian sense of humour though. Take a look at this video, which I find hilarious. I first saw it before arriving in Australia and I think it sums up nicely what the world believes to be true of Australia’s wildlife.
My experience
In the past six months, granted I have mostly been in urban areas, but I have also spent time on a farm in Queensland and paid a visit to the outback as well as doing a bit of bush-walking in Northern National Parks, so I would say that I have given the deadly critters plenty of opportunity to ‘welcome’ me. They haven’t, and of that I am glad.
Maybe I have just been lucky, or maybe the Aussies want the rest of the world to believe that life really here is a daily struggle to survive. What do you think?
Image credit – servicecentral
16 Comments
Steve
I know that when I hear about Australia’s wildlife, I hear a lot about what will kill you. Seriously, it seems as if some really deadly animals lurk there. Anyways, I’m sure the dangers aren’t that bad. I have a friend who just got back from a month there and I don’t think he ran into anything dangerous.
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Liv
Hi Steve – I think for the most part when people stay in urban areas there is little to worry about. Not that some of these creatures shouldn’t be taken very seriously indeed though!
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Aisleen
haha, it’s amazing what flashes through your mind when you see an Aussie spider – I remember having a shower and spotting a red back hanging above me in the cubicle – all i could think of was that it was gonna slip in the steam and fall and get caught up in my hair while i was shampooing! Had visions of a horrible death. I was fine though, obviously. 🙂
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Taco Bob
I think that spider is now in your laundry….
Liv
@Aisleen – Eurgh what a horrible thought! I’m glad you are fully recovered from the encounter now!
@Taco Bob – Thanks for that. I didn’t really need to hear that!
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Ian [EagerExistence]
The likeness between this post and my ‘about’ page is incredible! Found via the FB status update of @LifesGreatAdventures 😉
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Debora Araujo
Well, then come to Portugal. I’ve lived for ages in the countryside and there was no such thing as venom spiders or snakes, no crocodiles. There’s nothing deadly here except for the people, but that is everywhere.
I’m amazed, because this is one of the places in the world without dangerous bugs or animals.
Peace,
Debora.
Liv
@Ian – funny how different people see things so similarly isn’t it?
@Debora – I have certainly never worried about dangerous critters in Portugal – interesting!
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Russell
Ooo, the funnel web spider. Not my idea of fun. I found a redback in my garage the other day and have seen a python swinging from a tree in the local reserve/park! Takes some getting used to…
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Torre
I love scaring tourists before they come to Australia. My partner’s brother was visiting from the US and I had a great time scaring the shit out of him before he arrived. He has a fear of snakes, so I got him all worked up about the deadly snakes in Australia and how he should be careful when he’s walking around. I was pulling his leg, of course, because in 4 years, I’ve only ever seen one snake.
Then, he almost stood on a tiger snake near my house. It slithered right past his feet, while he danced on the spot and screamed like a girl.
Aussies love to joke about these things, but they’re also quite real!
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Liv
Hi Torre – How funny and terrifying at the same time! Australians certainly seem to love to boost the ‘killer animals’ thing. It’s almost all you hear about the place before you arrive. I’m nost surprised people get scared!
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Katrina
Haha! I love how the video shows a platypus. Big, scary, deadly platypus! 😉
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Katrina
ps: did your spider look anything like this? http://www.geekologie.com/2012/04/oh-you-know-jus…
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Liv
Hi Katrina – Do you know that the male platypus has venem-producing spurs on his hind linbs? I expect that’s why they are included. They are shy little creatures though, you’d be pushed to come across one by mistake. And thanks for the giant spider link. Glad I’m not living in Cairns anymore when I look at that!
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Vi_
My most beloved place in Australia is the one is marked as NOTHING 🙂
Liv
Hi Vi – the outback’s great isn’t it? I’ve only seen a bit but look forward to exploring properly one day.
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