Killer Australia: Deadly Secrets And Near-Death Experiences

Beaches, barbies, and blue skies—that’s what you might be imagining when you think of the land down under. The folks of Australia are known for their laid-back attitudes—but knowing that the country has some of the deadliest critters on the planet and that every crack and cranny might be hiding a deadly killer, you’d have to be laid-back just to make it through the day.

When venturing to the beach, you might have one particular fear in mind while swimming. But there’s plenty to worry about while hitting the waves. Take a look at the sting this box jellyfish delivered to a ten-year-old girl. She survived the encounter, but it was considered miraculous.

We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention any of Australia’s deadly spiders. Besides the black house spider, the mouse spider, the wolf spider, and the redback, there’s one big boy you should look out for while treading around barefoot (or with boots, it probably won’t matter).

As some of the oldest animals on the planet, these crocodiles dominate wherever they roam—rivers, swamps, or estuaries. These things are huge and can grow more than 20 feet long. At 4,400 pounds, this monster will have no trouble dragging you underwater.

They may look adorable—even benign—but you’d be staring into the face of death if you ever got too close. These powerfully-legged animals live in mobs and are fiercely protective of female members of their mob. During mating season, males will fight each other for dominance.

What could be dangerous about this odd-looking critter? Cone snails are most often found near the Indo-Pacific ocean reefs. Step too close to the cone snail, and you might find yourself heading to the hospital—or worse. Finding it difficult to see or put words together? It might already be too late.

It doesn’t just look horrifying—this creepy-crawler is armed with venomous claws that can sting its victims, causing pain that will last over the course of days. The intensity of this pain can vary, but it can be anything from a wasp sting to full-blown agony.

If you’ve never seen one of these things before, congratulations—you now have a new phobia—giant crabs. These monsters grow large enough to compact a trash can. They’re mainly found in the Pacific Ocean on Australia’s east side.

Many of the other dangerous animals can be avoided by staying indoors or watching your step. Dealing with the redback spider is a little trickier, as it likes to live in the walls of houses, clothes, and shoes. While it usually preys on smaller insects, it attacks people, too.

Crocodiles are one of the most enduring, deadliest animals out there—but there’s something even they are afraid of: the croc-eating python. These two animals have been known to duke it out. For the python, the prize is an all-you-can-eat meal that will last for several weeks.

These birds are a cross between an ostrich and a turkey, but don’t let their odd appearance fool you—you can easily lose your life facing up to one of these things. It’s known as the world’s most dangerous bird in the Guinness Book of World Records.

The red-bellied black snake is a relatively common Aussie snake that can be found in urban areas stretching from Townsville in North Queensland to Sydney in southeastern New South Wales. As you might have guessed from its name, this snake has a red belly.

Great White Sharks – as anyone who has seen Jaws can attest – are terrifying. Although they’re not native to Australia, they are known to roam along the coasts from Queensland in the northeast to Western Australia in the west.

Inside the deadly jaws (and grip) of the python above is a flying fox. Now, a flying fox isn’t a fox with wings. Instead, it’s a kind of megabat that’s found in Australia, South Asia, and a few other places.

The name “stonefish” may make you think this fish is nothing to worry about. Nothing could be further from the truth. The stonefish – which looks like a rock as you might have guessed – is covered in dorsal fin spines as sharp as needles.

It’s not only poisonous animals you have to worry about in Australia, it’s also the trees and fruit. For example, the strychnine tree produces a small orange fruit that looks relatively benign. In truth, the fruit is full of toxic seeds that can cause convulsions and even death.

As we’ve seen above, the plant and animal life in Australia can get pretty intense and dangerous. Well, the intense danger doesn’t stop with that – Mother Nature often steps in to crank up the danger meter another few notches. For example, look at the hail below.

Dingoes are a kind of wild dog that runs around the Australian outback in packs of 10 or so members. They’re fast-moving, with some reaching 6 to 12 miles a day. Although packs of wild dogs may sound dangerous, they aren’t as deadly as stonefish or great white sharks.

The popular steakhouse took its name from this unique part of Australia. The outback is an enormous, sprawling mass of mostly desert that makes up the interior of the country. It stretches from the north to the south and is sparsely populated – mostly by indigenous people and farmers raising sheep, cattle, and goats.

Size doesn’t matter for this venomous jellyfish. Despite being only a cubic centimeter in size, the Irukandji jellyfish causes a large amount of pain if you happen to get too close. These natives of Northern Australian waters can fire out venom from their nearly invisible stingers.

Koalas are typically thought to be cute but lazy creatures who sleep in trees all day. For the most part, that’s right – they’re incredibly cute and sleep up to 22 hours a day! Sometimes, however, they get angry during the two hours they’re awake.

Heat is yet another example of Mother Nature conspiring to harm people in Australia. Summer in Australia isn’t simply uncomfortable – it’s downright dangerous! For example, some highs in the outback reach 122° F. That’s so hot that you can crack an egg on the sidewalk and watch it fry.

Although most dangerous animals live in the rural parts of Australia, there are quite a few that prefer city life. One of the most notorious is the Eastern Brown Snake. This slithering beast is considered the second-most deadly snake on earth.

With a name like Lionfish, it makes sense to assume these creatures aren’t to be messed with. That assumption is right. Located on Australia’s east coast, the lionfish (or pterois) are venomous marine fish. Despite that, they aren’t that dangerous to humans.

As the world’s largest island, Australia is also one of the world’s top surfing destinations. People from all over the world come to hit the waves for fun or to win competitions such as Rip Curls Pro Bells Beach.

It’s not only the plants, animals, and weather that are dangerous in Australia, it’s also the sportspeople! In particular, the rugby players. Although they don’t go out tackling random people on the streets, rugby players do regularly tackle each other, leading to all sorts of injuries.

Although box jellyfish and eastern brown snakes get a lot of (deserved) notoriety in Australia, they don’t cause the most deaths. That dubious trophy goes to the regular old bee. Although they may seem nothing more than a nuisance, they cause a lot of hospitalizations.

Australia has its fair share – or unfair share depending on who you ask – of deadly snakes. These range from the relatively quiet red-bellied black snake to the more aggressive eastern brown snake. Well, there’s one more to add: the inland taipan.

When you look at pictures of the Australian outback on the internet, it looks gorgeous – otherworldly even! Romantic types might imagine driving a car through that open landscape, stopping occasionally to get out and wander for a few hours. Although it sounds nice, it’s easier said than done.

Octopi are known for their intelligence and their ability to change shape, color, and texture right before your eyes. On top of those admirable traits, add the ability to be dangerous. True, not all octopi are dangerous, but the blue-ringed octopus certainly is.

The name “blue-ringed octopus” doesn’t tell you much about the octopus other than the fact that it has blue rings. In contrast, the name “Australian paralysis tick” tells you everything you need to know about this dangerous creature.

The bull shark has a reputation to back up its intense-sounding name. They’re known to be aggressive to other fish, sharks, and humans. Unfortunately, they’re also able to live in shallow salt water and shallow freshwater environments. So, if you’re swimming, scuba diving, or surfing in Australia, you may come face to face.

We met the inland taipan above. The coastal taipan is its deadly cousin and the third most venomous snake on earth. That means that Australia has the top three deadliest snakes on land: the inland taipan, the eastern brown snake, and the coastal taipan. Yikes!

Australia has a way of surprising you no matter what. It seems like having the top three deadliest land snakes wasn’t enough for Australia, so it also threw in a few deadly sea snakes for good measure.

The Portuguese man o’ war reaches far beyond the shores of Portugal. It’s also commonly found on the east coast of Australia. Not only is it commonly found, but it’s commonly the cause of painful stings during the summer months. In fact, up to 10,000 stings happen yearly!

Although the smooth toadfish may not look too dangerous on the outside (it doesn’t have any scales or stingers), looks can be deceiving. That’s because the smooth toadfish flesh is incredibly poisonous.

The Textile Cone Snail has a wholesome name that might make you want to pick it up for a pat or two. That would be a mistake. Despite its neutral name and colorful shell, this snail packs quite a venomous punch.

The mouse spider spends most of its time in burrows but occasionally wanders into the odd suburban backyard. If it does, watch out because these spiders are far deadlier than any mouse. In fact, their venom is on par with the notorious funnel-web spider we saw before.

The tiger snake has two main things in common with tigers. First, they are striped. Second, they’re deadly. Stripes run along their entire body, although the precise color and pattern can change quite a bit. Their deadliness comes in the form of a neurotoxic venom.

It takes less than 0.15 seconds for the common death adder to strike – making them one of the fastest strikers in the world. With long fangs and a broad triangular head, they’re relatively easy to identify. Like most snakes, they want to be left alone.

The mulga snake is not only venomous, it’s long and venomous. As if that wasn’t enough, it’s also found in nearly all Australian states. So, putting it all together, this 12-foot venomous snake is incredibly common. Yikes!