Question for Australians

[quirkyquerty]

Genuine question- are you not frightened all the time of swimming and meeting a shark, cleaning and meeting a deadly spider, getting the bikes out of the shed and meeting a deadly snake and so on and so forth?

Or is that just certain parts of Australia? It fascinates me!

I forgot about cane toads- check out this bugger:

Giant cane toad found in Conway National Park in north Queensland weighs 2.7kg - ABC News

Being from Vic I've never seen a live one, no idea they could get this big!

Most popular swimming areas have shark nets. Other areas that are known to have sharks (like my local river) the community simply knows they are there and swim at their own risk.

You get to know where spiders are likely to hang out. Redback spiders like dim, enclosed spaces such as cupboards, underneath patio furniture, letterboxes doorframes, sheds, etc., so you know to take extra care in areas like that. Their webs are quite distinctive as well.

Snakes? Walk loudly. Snakes are primarily fearful and scuttle away before they can be seen, so it helps to be noisy. I live on farmland, so I've had plenty of snake encounters - including one that was too close for comfort. I'm not as frightened as I once was, though.

I remember being fascinated/terrified of red back spiders for a while since I watched the neighbours episode where a baby Sky Mangel got bitten while sitting in her car seat. Anyone else remember that?😬
Since then I've lived in places that have redback spiders (among others) and I'm not so scared now!

You're more likely to be king hit by a bloke named Dane in a bintang singlet than taken by a shark. I honestly just don't think about any of it. I think most of us are sensible about it (not swimming in a stupid places etc) but not actively thinking about all of the potential death. All are welcome!

Yes those, plus a few sundry jellyfish and stingers that are very unpleasant to encounter. Box jellies, blue bottles..

Drop bears.

Simply Terrifying

I knew someone would mention the Drop Bears. They are the worst.

Yep and people think we're joking about the drop bears and that it's some kind of hoax. They thought that about the platypus once upon a time too...

Bloody oath, my Uncle was taken out by a drop bear. RIP Alf.

Tree can be super dangerous too, gum trees are actually called widow makers, probably because drop bears live in them

Strewth! Stone the flamin crows, those buggers.

I will never forget the time I heard two drop bears mating. It was the stuff of nightmares.

When I first arrived n Australia I thought people were exaggerating. And then I saw one. Oh god. The teeth……

The reason more people are being attacked on K’Gari (Fraser Island) is because more and more people have 4WD vehicles and the interior has had tracks laid with sleepers, making it much more accessible. It used to be only “Hardcore” bushies that went there and now there are resorts. The more people that go there = more food for the dingoes to scavenge. More tents to get into, etc. They’re cute looking dogs. Pretty sure my kids would have found them irresistible when they were small and vulnerable. No amount of telling them not to feed them would have stopped them trying.

OMG, WHAT ARE DROP BEARS??!!

K’Gari has always been popular. In the 70’s people didn’t even go with 4X4s, just usual family cars! So funny.

The reason dingo attacks are more prevalent is because they’re now a protected species on K’Gari so their population numbers aren’t controlled anymore.

The indigenous owners of K’Gari have recommended to the government several times that their population numbers need to be reduced. Just like they warned the government about potential bushfires spreading out of control if they’re not allowed to carry out controlled bush burns. Look what happened there (2019). Anyway, I digress. We need to pay more attention to our First Nations People.

Also, dingos are becoming less timid of humans because so many idiots keep feeding them and touching them.

@Appalonia
They’re very, very rare and any photos appear to be faked or photoshopped. I wouldn’t worry too much about them unless you are deep in the bush.

LOL no, I’m not scared of any of those things. I don’t swim, so meeting sharks isn’t an issue. I live in the suburbs and have never seen a snakeI’m nervous about spiders, yes, but there aren’t nasties like the funnelwebs where I live, just huntsmen, and though they’re scary to look at and move fast, they’re not dangerous. I’m more worried about a spider appearing when I’m driving than anything else!

Photoshopped koalas is what they are. No such creatures.

Gum trees aren’t dangerous because of animals, but because their branches can drop off unexpectedly.

Brit who has been to Oz a couple of times.

OP I'd be more worried about the gympie-gympie stinging bush, that's really nasty, so are box jellyfish.

Australia has far more harmless and even friendly animals I once met a bandicoot at a restaurant in Cairns.

I’ve got 23 gum trees in my front yard. We had 4 cut down that were way too close to the house - I felt bad but because we live on the coast we get many very strong marine winds and I did not want one uprooting and coming through my roof. It’s rare (their roots are huge), but it happens.

When I lived in the city a huge branch off a Moreton Bay Fig Tree fell just seconds after I’d walked under it. It was so big it stretched across the footpath and 3 lanes of traffic. Emergency services didn’t quite believe me when I rang them, weirdly. But police were there in minutes, as it was a main road and the rest of the afternoon saw the road blocked, the branch cut up and removed it. Big trees can do this anywhere in the world that has big trees. We don’t spend our lives worrying about it.

This seems like the right place for a photo of Nigel, who lives around the corner from my house. He is a Golden Orb and that's a string of his victims.😁When we bought our house we had one of these right in front of the front door. The vendor refused to move him, but I insisted. I sometimes wonder if its the same spider!

Aww, Nigel
We name our spiders too, at the moment Jimothy is in the bathroom. He is teensy . My son checks every day if he is ok ( don't tell him, but I'm sure there have been many Jimothy's)
That huge canetoad upthread ! That is just wrong. Bloody things aren't even Australian, some moron ( actually I think a scientist) brought them here to eat local pests.
Also, cheers to England for the rabbits and the foxes . A big help 😆

Not scared of sharks as they're pretty rare and as soon as one is sighted everyone is called off the beach.

Terrified of spiders, but I'm pretty good at spotting them and the little dangerous kind aren't that scary to look at. You learn where they are likely to hide (shoes left outside, for example) so give them a good shake or keep them inside.

Snakes around my area are pretty shy, we don't have the brown snakes that are pretty aggressive and venomous. I don't walk through long grass though!

I think it's pretty hard to really get into much trouble with the dangerous creatures in Australia. Unless you swim in waters that have huge signs nearby to warn you of the crocodiles.

We're lucky Tasmanian Devils are only the size of small cats, or they'd be eating people left right and centre.