Western Morning News (Saturday)
CREATURES WE LOVE TO FEAR
Sharks, snakes and spiders – Nature:
Asustained spell of sunny weather has resulted in plenty of wildlife sightings of interest this spring. It is not just that there is more wildlife to be seen as the days lengthen, but also that there are more people out and about to see it!
And among the species spotted are a few that strike terror into some.
There have been sightings of sharks and of snakes and even the odd interesting spider. A hat-trick of our most feared creatures.
This week I take a look at these three ‘S’s – the animals that have become the stuff of phobias – and the dangers, or statistical lack of them, that our UK varieties pose. So those of a weak disposition, cover your eyes and turn the page now...
We should be terrified of cows, dogs and deer if the statistics are anything to go by – but when it comes to scare stories, relatively harmless sharks, snakes and spiders always grab the headlines, writes
SHARKS
No unprovoked attacks recorded in UK
Reduced marine traffic due to pandemic restrictions, warm sea temperatures and flat calm, sunny days have provided excellent conditions for spotting marine life.
There have already been a number of early shark sightings from around the Westcountry coast, with the familiar and ever-captivating basking shark putting in an appearance.
It is generally the height of summer when the headlines start to scream: ‘Shark!’ as one of these leviathans is spotted, sometimes close to shore. They are harmless plankton eaters, but that doesn’t stop them being a thrilling sighting nonetheless.
Up to the length of a bus, the basking shark is the second largest fish in the oceans after the whale shark, and tends to swim slowly as it sieves the briny plankton soup. On calm, warm days, when the zooplankton is concentrated at the surface, this gentle giant moves steadily and slowly (so slowly it can appear to be ‘basking’), its dark dorsal fin and tail moving in an alternating side-to-side motion. Sometimes the nose is visible as it opens its huge gape just beneath the surface, and a good viewing in clear conditions can reveal the enormity of its body in the water.
Now protected, basking sharks were heavily overfished, and are a far less frequent sight than in the past. They are most commonly seen in the warmer months, and the three main hotspots are off the South West, the Isle of Man and north-west Scotland. When the conditions are good, a wildlife watching boat trip off Cornwall provides the best chance of spotting one.
They have already been seen on several occasions by wildlife cruises this spring and one turned up in Torquay harbour in mid-April, giving paddleboarders a surprise.
We also get blue sharks off Cornwall in summer – slim, strikingly coloured and generally found a distance offshore, with snorkelling and diving trips even offering the opportunity to swim with them.
The biggest surprise this spring has been sightings of a young porbeagle shark in Plymouth’s Sutton Harbour. This far-roaming mackerel eater is a close relative of the great white shark, though smaller, and is found off our coast. There has never been a confirmed sighting of a great white in UK waters, though the similar-looking porbeagle can lead to confusion.
According to the Shark Trust, based in Plymouth, there are over 40 members of the shark family in
British waters, including dogfish, and 21 are present all year round – though you would need to be a marine biologist, diver, fisherman, or extremely lucky to encounter any but the basking shark.
Despite the variety of UK sharks, there have been no unprovoked shark bites in British waters since records began in 1847, according to the trust. People have occasionally been bitten handling or catching sharks.
It is sharks who should fear us, not the other way around. It is estimated that at least 100 million of these apex predators are harvested or killed as by-catch worldwide every year – and the actual figure could be twice as high. Globally, sharks kill around six people a year. Statistically, dogs are far more dangerous, killing upwards of 25,000 people a year through rabies infections. In the US about 30 people die annually from dog bites while in the UK the figure is in low single figures.
SNAKES
Last fatal bite incident in 1975
We have three kinds of snake in Britain – the grass snake, the rare smooth snake and the adder.
The adder – also known as the viper – is our only venomous snake, but a little perspective is needed when it comes to the danger this much-feared species poses.
Adders are not aggressive, preferring to hide when disturbed, and records of bites are rare. Inquisitive dogs are more at risk of a nip than people – and one dog was bitten this week on the coast path in Devon. The last person in Britain to die from an adder bite was in 1975, and there have only been 14 human deaths attributed to adders since 1876.
Statistically speaking, when going for a country walk cattle are far more dangerous. Between March 2000 and March 2020, 98 people were killed by cattle in the UK, according to the Health & Safety Executive. Of those, 22 were members of the public, with the rest being either farmers or farm workers.
Having said that, one should not be complacent about adders. While the majority of human bites are not serious, anyone bitten should remain calm and seek medical attention.
Adders are mostly found in open habitats, such as heathland,
moorland, along sea cliffs and woodland rides, road and rail embankments. They are most easily spotted when they emerge from hibernation in the spring and bask in the sun to raise their body temperature.
They are thick built, grey or brown in colour, with red eyes, and can be identified by the black zig-zag running down their back.
SPIDERS
No UK deaths recorded
We have more than 650 species of spider in Britain – but unless you find spiders creepy, one has little to fear from them. The vast majority are harmless and, according to the Natural History Museum, only a dozen UK species have been recorded as having bitten people, generally causing only a mild reaction.
However, one species in particular has become famed above all the others for the headlines it has generated in recent years: the false widow spider.
While the menacing-sounding black widow spider has a potentially dangerous bite, its diverse varieties are not found in the UK, living instead in continental Europe, Asia and America. The false widow shares its sinister label, as they are commonly mistaken for black widows, but the clue is in the term ‘false’ – species do not pose anywhere near the same threat as their more venomous close relatives.
In the UK we have three species of false widow spider associated with buildings and gardens – all small with a rather bulbous abdomen, and they can be seen year-round but are typically encountered in autumn. The most notorious of the trio is the 14mm-long noble false widow (Steatoda nobilis), which does have a more venomous bite than other British species.
It was first discovered in Torquay in 1879 and its population remained confined to the south coast for the next 100 years or so, but more recently has begun spreading, which experts believe could be the result of a warming climate.
The few spider bites in Britain confirmed as being from false widow spiders mainly involve the noble false widow, identified by the intricate white patterning across its abdomen.
Invertebrate charity Buglife says on its website that, in the unlikely event of getting nipped by a false widow, the symptoms are mild – including localised pain, swelling and sometimes nausea and headaches – with no recorded cases of death, coma or permanent injury as a result of the venom. More extreme side effects occasionally reported appear to be caused by bacterial infection at the site of the bite.
The British Arachnological Society says: “A spider bite provokes an excessive media reaction when considered against the number of people stung by wasps and bees or bitten by mosquitos.”
Every year in the UK there are 2–9 deaths due to anaphylaxis from bee or wasp stings, according to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence.
And compare the risks our spiders pose to something as widely adored as deer… It is estimated there are up to 74,000 deer-related traffic accidents annually in Britain, causing hundreds of injuries and several fatalities a year.
We all love a good scare story, but some creatures – and spiders in particular – are blighted by a bad press whatever the facts regarding the relative threat they pose.