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It’s truly astonishing that Australians remain so relaxed while their country is home to creatures that can take a life faster than you can open a Foster’s beer and shout “Crikey!” These perilous animals roam the land hunting for victims, or lurk in the ocean's depths, ready to strike at an unsuspecting human or fish. While they may be hard to spot, here’s a look at some of the creatures and places you need to watch out for in Australia.
10. Stonefish
You wouldn't expect a fish to be so deadly. Most of us have them swimming in bowls, naming them things like Nemo or Bubbles. But the stonefish is no ordinary fish—it's known as the deadliest fish on Earth.
The stonefish earned its name due to its remarkable ability to blend into coral reefs (including the stunning Great Barrier Reef). Its colors can vary based on its environment.
While it typically feeds on smaller fish, your encounter with it might be fatal if it makes contact with you. Its dorsal fin contains spines sharp enough to pierce through boots and skin. These spines are filled with venom. When they puncture human skin, the pain can be excruciating and last for hours.
But the situation worsens significantly: Victims experience shock, high blood pressure, paralysis, and eventually death. Definitely not the kind of catch you want on the end of your line!
9. Redback Spider
Here’s the first of the eight-legged creatures on this list, and it’s certainly one of the most striking. Redback spiders are found all across Australia. The spider gets its name from the vivid red stripe that runs along the female’s abdomen, serving as a warning to any potential threats.
A bite from this spider can trigger a variety of symptoms, such as muscle stiffness, twitching, nausea, difficulty breathing, increased heart rate, high blood pressure, weakness, and sweating. The venom can be fatal unless treated quickly with antivenom. Since these spiders can be found throughout Australia, you'll be checking anything red twice over.
8. Inland Taipan
The inland taipan, native to Australia, is a type of brown snake that camouflages itself perfectly within the desert landscape. These snakes can grow up to over 2.5 meters (8.2 ft) in length.
Its venom, delivered through 12-millimeter (0.5 in) fangs, is potent enough to kill nearly 100 men with just a single drop! A bite from this snake can gradually slow a person’s heart rate and increase the chances of a stroke. Fortunately, these snakes are mostly found in remote regions, though that doesn’t make the threat any less real.
7. Great White Shark
The great white shark makes us peer into the dark abyss of the ocean, gulping as we wonder just how many of them are circling beneath us. How many times have we watched Jaws and sworn we'd never set foot in the ocean again?
Great whites can grow to over 6 meters (20 ft) in length and weigh as much as 1,800 kilograms (4,000 lb), large enough to kill multiple people. In Australia, there have been nearly 700 unprovoked great white attacks, with around 200 of them resulting in fatalities and nearly 400 causing injuries. Their teeth resemble a set of custom-made knives, capable of tearing you apart faster than you can throw a shrimp on the barbie!
6. Red-Bellied Black Snake
It seems there's a recurring theme where the color red signals a deadly animal in Australia. The red-bellied black snake, which resides on the eastern coast, can reach lengths of up to 2 meters (7 ft).
With its dark black body, the snake becomes nearly invisible at night, hunting both its usual prey of frogs and any unsuspecting humans. However, its vivid red belly glows in the dark like a nightclub’s neon lights. A bite from this snake can cause skin cells to die, and without prompt treatment with antivenom, it could lead to kidney failure and even death.
5. Blue-Ringed Octopus
The blue-ringed octopus looks like it’s come straight out of an Alien movie or Pirates of the Caribbean. With its sharp beak and long, tentacle-like arms, this sea creature is usually spotted while it’s resting, not doing much.
When it feels threatened, this creature lights up like fireworks on the Fourth of July, displaying blue rings and lines across its body. If those warning signs are missing and you encounter its venomous bite, you’ll experience muscle weakness, respiratory failure, and most likely death. Sadly, there is no known antivenom.
4. Funnel-Web Spider
The funnel-web spider is arguably the most vicious arachnid on Earth. While there are several species, the Sydney variant is particularly deadly and would likely never be invited to family gatherings due to its extreme danger compared to its relatives.
Funnel-web spiders can grow to be 1–5 centimeters (0.4–2.0 in) long and come in various colors, ranging from black to brown. The venom from the spider's large, hairy fangs attacks the nervous system, causing symptoms like foaming at the mouth and involuntary muscle spasms. If untreated, a bite can lead to death.
If that’s not alarming enough, all of this can happen within just two hours. So, we’ll probably all be checking underneath our beds every night from now on.
3. Chironex fleckeri (Sea Wasp)
Chironex fleckeri, a species of box jellyfish commonly called the sea wasp, can be found in the coastal waters around Australia. This creature’s tentacles discharge venom with tremendous force when they pierce a prey’s skin. The sting can result in immediate symptoms like hypotension, intense pain, tissue death, cardiovascular collapse, and eventually, cardiac arrest.
While this may sound similar to the Irukandji jellyfish, the tiniest type of box jellyfish, the Chironex fleckeri is very different. It can grow as large as a basketball, which means it can inject even more venom into the nervous system of its victim.
Chironex fleckeri is more lethal than some of its relatives because there is little time to intervene after a sting. Victims may die within minutes, with many passing away in the hospital or even during transport in an ambulance.
2. Irukandji Jellyfish
When the word 'deadly' comes to mind, most people probably don't think of a creature that usually just drifts along in the water, minding its own business. But if you happen to encounter an Irukandji jellyfish, you’ll wish you hadn’t.
The Irukandji jellyfish, named after the indigenous people of the region in Australia, has stingers that inject venom causing the Irukandji syndrome. This syndrome leads to symptoms like anxiety, nausea, vomiting, pain in all limbs, and difficulty breathing. It also disrupts the electrical signals in the heart.
These effects begin within 20–40 minutes of being stung, giving you little time to respond. The only reason more people don't fall victim to this venom—100 times more potent than a cobra's—is because the Irukandji jellyfish is about the size of a fingernail.
1. Saltwater Crocodile
The saltwater crocodile (or 'salties') isn’t exactly known for being discreet when it comes to hunting. With over 100,000 of these creatures prowling Australia’s saltwater rivers, their population continues to rise, which is definitely a cause for concern.
Salties can reach lengths of up to 7 meters (23 ft) and weigh as much as 1,000 kilograms (2,200 lb), far more than anyone would want to encounter during a nighttime swim. Armed with 68 formidable teeth, these predators trap their prey in their jaws before performing a terrifying 'death roll,' a spinning move that drags their victim underwater and tears them apart.
Since the saltwater crocodile became a protected species in 1971, one-third of the attacks on humans have resulted in death in Australia.
