Issue of the day The snakes and spiders plague

AUSTRALIA is home to some of the world’s most venomous snakes and spiders at the best of times, but in the wake of recent severe flooding, the creatures are invading homes – and beds.

Beds!

Yes, if you have arachnophobia then this will make you shiver because reports from swathes of the country hit hardest by what has been branded Australia’s worst flood disaster in history, reveal dozens of residents have come face to face with spiders – and also slithering snakes – once they venture back into their homes.

Where were the floods?

Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison has declared a national emergency over flooding in New South

Wales and Queensland, with the disaster claiming 21 lives in what he said was a “once in a 500-year event”. Campaigners say the severity of the flooding is due to the impact of climate change.

And now?

The subsiding water means many residents are returning home, only to find that snakes and spiders have taken refuge inside properties, popping up in beds, shoes and sofas. They have included pythons, venomous red-bellied snakes and eastern brown snakes, with the latter regarded as one of the world’s most dangerous, with the second most toxic of all snake venoms in the world.

Yikes!

Professional snake catchers, Snake Out

Brisbane, post regular updates of their catches online, saying: “It’s been a crazy week... be careful during the clean-up”, alongside videos of snakes removed from garages and properties. Snake catcher Glenn Lawrence was called to 25 houses in three days, saying: “It’s the most red-bellied black snakes I have caught in such a small amount of time”, adding that impacted creatures are nestling in sofas and beds and “wherever higher ground might be.”

And spiders?

Spiders are the most widely distributed venomous creatures in Australia, with an estimated 10,000 species. The Australian Reptile Park has reported an increase in sightings, along with a surge in the number of funnel-web spiders brought in. Residents are told to check shoes and household items for spiders, with rainfall flooding their nests in the ground making it more likely they will be inside.

Funnel-webs?

They are one of the best known and most dangerous spiders in Australia, with highly toxic venom. The park’s head reptile and spider keeper, Jake Meney, said: “We’re receiving more and more reports of funnel-webs being found in homes as they seek refuge from the water.”