It is also called the fierce snake, and carries enough venom in a single bite to kill around , mice. But why does Australia have so many animals that are highly venomous? First, we need to go back million years. This land mass gradually split apart , with Africa and South America breaking off first, followed 40 million years later by India and Madagascar.
Australia and Antarctica finally broke apart around million years ago. Today, venomous snakes are found in all of these places — apart from Antarctica, where it is too cold for them to live. On the original combined land mass, it is thought that there was a population of ancestral snakes that was venomous. These were separated when the land masses broke apart. Curious Kids is a series by The Conversation that gives children the chance to have their questions about the world answered by experts.
These are a group of snakes that inject their prey with venom from hollow, fixed fangs. Imagine a snake that uses venom to kill its prey. There is no doubt Australia harbours venomous animals and encounters that can be traumatic and need a rapid emergency response. We must we careful not to understate the impact of any encounters with venomous animals on families and the sufferers themselves.
Nor must we play down the highly specialised management, effective treatment and medical care required. My colleagues and I recently published a review of hospital admissions and deaths caused by venomous animals in the Internal Medical Journal. We sourced data from from national hospital admissions and national coronial information, which showed more than 42, hospitalisations from venomous sting or bites.
Most — not all — are shown in the graph, below. This can be loosely averaged 0. Over the 12 years, 64 people were killed by a venomous sting or bite, with more than half of these 34 caused by an allergic reaction to an insect bite that brought on anaphylactic shock. Of these, 27 deaths were the result of a bee or wasp sting, with only one case of a beekeeper being killed.
Anaphylaxis to tick and ant bites combined caused five deaths, the box jellyfish caused three deaths and two deaths were from an unidentified insect. Given there are species of land snakes in Australia, snake bite fatalities are very rare, at 27 for the study period.
Anti-venom is now often not administered unless the bite victim is young, elderly or otherwise infirm. Curiously, one of the most dangerous spiders cannot actually hurt you. The daddy long-legs has a small body and very long, thin legs. It is a common house spider and loves to eat flies. These dangerous Australians are therefore harmless for humans. The sea and the beach are alive with things that can kill you. As a general rule: do not let your children go fossicking on the beach in Australia unless you and they are fully aware of the creatures they might find and which ones are dangerous.
Cone snails are actually one of the most deadly animals in Australia and they look like pretty shells. I have never seen one: they are most common in the north of Australia. Comfortingly, the venom has the capacity to kill 15 humans within just hours. Worst yet, their harpoon-like tooth can inject venom through gloves and wetsuits. They are most often encountered walking on the beach or wading in the water.
Wear shoes when walking in shallow water or rock pools to help avoid stepping on any of these creatures. Go looking for shells on a different beach where there are fewer dangerous Australians. The stonefish is the most venomous fish in the world. Unsurprisingly, it is found in Australia. It has excellent camouflage capabilities and is difficult to see until it is stepped on, when it shoots venom through 13 spines into whatever squashed them.
Their venom can cause severe pain, heart failure and death. Fortunately, anti-venom was developed in the s and there have been no known deaths since. Stonefish can live out of water for up to 24 hours. So, again, wear shoes when walking in the shallows and rock pools. Dousing the spot with vinegar can help alleviate pain. It is easily recognisable from its bright blue rings that become more prominent when threatened. They are generally found in coral reefs and tide pools in the north of Australia, but have also been found on beaches in the south of Australia with increasing frequency.
Several humans are bitten each year — mostly when they try to touch it. The bites are painless but can cause paresthesias, numbness, muscular weakness and difficulty breathing within 5 minutes. There is currently no antidote, but reported deaths are few. There are 31 Australian sea snakes, all of which are venomous. Most are docile or rarely encountered by people such as the yellow-bellied sea snake.
The exception is the beaked sea snake. A single bite can cause paralysis and muscle damage. Fortunately, an anti-venom is available.
Dory made bouncing on box jellyfish look like fun in Finding Nemo. The Great Barrier Reef and the northern Australian waters are home to this poisonous and almost invisible creature. Each tentacle and there are up to 60 of them! The severity of the sting will depend on the size of both the jellyfish and the victim and how many stingers are involved. More than 70 people have died since from jellyfish stings. At least two of the victims both in actually died from Irukandji syndrome as a result of stings from Irukandji jellyfish.
These jellyfish are tiny — about one cubic centimetre in size — and transparent, so that they are very difficult to see in the water. This makes them the smallest but also one of the most venomous jellyfish in the world.
Their sting can cause muscle cramps, nausea and even brain haemorrhaging… nice! Take a bottle of vinegar with you to the beach. It will only cause more pain. Seek medical attention. Cassowaries are the second-heaviest flightless bird and the third tallest. They are also classified as the most dangerous bird on earth.
Unsurprisingly, they come from Australia. This strange prehistoric throwback — like an emu with a boney lump called a casque its head and blue neck and red collar and wattles like a turkey — inhabits the rainforests off north-eastern Australia. It is a very territorial bird and will use these claws as weapons if it feels threatened. Hundreds of attacks on humans are reported every year; fortunately few are fatal. Another dangerous Australian bird is the magpie, but only during spring.
This territorial bird is black and white and only a little smaller than a crow. In spring September these birds will swoop on anyone who comes near their nest. The swooping is so bad, that Australians will wear sunglasses on the back of their head or draw a face on the top of a cap to fool the magpie that they are being watched. Make sure you pack your sunglasses if you are visiting Australia in the spring.
They are not to be messed with. The most famous, of course, is the boxing kangaroo. Australians idolise them so much that they put a boxing kangaroo on a flag and display that flag at sporting events. And it is based on fact. Kangaroos can balance on their tail and use their legs and claws to seriously injure any threats. Kangaroos are territorial and the alpha male will look after his mob — from other kangaroos and humans.
When animals become used to human food, they will attack if they realize you have some and are not sharing. So it might not be you but the next tourist who is attacked. Even when you are visiting a wildlife park, such as Cleland , where you are allowed to feed the kangaroos, emus, bettongs, etc, only feed them the pellets available for purchase. However, the biggest danger posed by Australian wildlife is the risk of having a car accident when you swerve to avoid hitting one of the furry critters.
They walk away, and you total your car hitting a tree. Kangaroos are particularly dangerous. Wild camels in the centre of Australia can be dangerous, too. Most visitors and locals will drive a 4WD with a bull bar when in the desert.
The bull bar is then at the right height to knock a camel off its feet — so the whole animal ends up going through your windscreen. Perhaps the most dangerous Australian marsupial of all, however, is the adorable wombat. These little bundles of muscle are used to bracing when they think their burrow is collapsing. Never put your hand down a wombat burrow as the wombat will think their burrow is collapsing and brace, crushing your hand in the process.
Generally, they will brace when involved in a car accident, too.
0コメント