Australia! not for the light at heart

BY KAHA G. – 14 YEARS OLD

After a hectic period of floods and heavy rain in Australia, you go outside into your backyard to check the damages. You slowly creep through the back doors and quickly look at the pool. What do you see? A funnel web spider is relaxing in your pool…

If you are anything like me, you’ll probably be thinking, “Of course, it’s in Australia.” The worst part is the title of the article by livescience.com, “Deadly spiders that can kill in minutes and survive underwater are hiding out in swimming pools.” 

Another story. Imagine you go to the beach. You are in awe to see the beautiful soothing blue water crashing into the shore. So, you decide to go for a swim to collect pretty shells to take home with you. Mesmerized by their different and unique shapes and sizes, you pick one up from the water, and you see a tiny creature fall and land on your abdomen. You start to wonder, “Oh, it’s a small octopus with blue striking rings on it,” but you aren’t familiar with this particular species. Then it nibbles on your stomach, only for you to find out that you got bitten by one of the world’s most toxic animals.

The blue-ringed octopus has a powerful neurotoxin that can paralyze and kill humans even in small doses. Unfortunately, this was a reality for a woman who luckily survived to tell the tale.

Surprise, surprise; both of these stories took place in Australia. Not degrading their country, as it is beautiful, just bombarded with deadly animals and bugs. So, if you’re visiting Australia just be cautious, be very cautious.

Now, what should you take from this article? That Australia is a no-go for vacation? Not at all, but there are so many animals and insects that we are clueless about around the world. We live on an earth with so many of them, yet don’t recognize them for their uniqueness.

It would be beneficial to know what animals to avoid in certain situations. When visiting a new country, always know what animals to avoid especially if they are poisonous, and most importantly stay safe out there.