Chameleon snake!

[gonzo914]

@Cynth

How can anyone even put so much as a big toe in the water there?

They probably end up n the water when they’re not watching where they’re going when they’re running from snakes.

And crocodiles.

And whatever other nasty piece of fauna is after you.

I see you have the entire six-volume set.

[Cynth]

@gonzo914

@Cynth

How can anyone even put so much as a big toe in the water there?

They probably end up n the water when they’re not watching where they’re going when they’re running from snakes.

And crocodiles.

And whatever other nasty piece of fauna is after you.

I see you have the entire six-volume set.

Yes. And I haven’t even begun to investigate the flora.

[herbivore12]

@Cynth

Yes. And I haven’t even begun to investigate the flora.

Hiking in the rainforest of Queensland, we were warned to be careful of a tree called the Blind-Your-Eye Mangrove, which exudes a sap that can cause skin blisters and, yes, blindness if you get it in your eye. The claim was that the tree could actually squirt the sap several feet from a freshly broken twig or branch, but I’m not sure . . .

When I was in Australia I was always getting warned about deadly things. Even the cassowary – a big unlikely-looking flightless bird – came with this caution from a ranger when I told him I was hoping to see one: “If ya do see one, sling your backpack ‘round so you’re wearin’ it in front of ya, so he can’t disembowel ya.” Sheesh.

Even the adorable little platypus has the distinction of being one of the only poisonous mammals on Earth (the males have a spur on their hind legs through which they can deliver a venomous kick). Cute is different from harmless, it turns out.

A scary place, but wonderful nonetheless, for all that.

[Lambchop]

@Cynth

How can anyone even put so much as a big toe in the water there?

I was about to suggest just sticking to swimming pools, but . . . umm . . . no . . . that’s where the spiders drop into . . .


And y’all think Florida is bad? Sheesh!

[ICohen]

Oops. See below…

[ICohen]

@Cynth

Unfortunately, I can’t remember what sort of deadly spider it was that swims in back yard swimming pools and bites people. I have actually never been quite the same since seeing these episodes.

And…

@Cynth

CLICK—>

Sydney Funnel Web (Atrax robustus)

This is one mother of a spider!

It is a large (6-7 cm), black, aggressive, ugly looking spider with massive fangs. These are large and powerful enough to easily penetrate a fingernail. When disturbed it tends to rear up on its hind legs, a defensive posture that exposes the fangs. They don’t jump. During a bite the spider firmly grips its victim and bites repeatedly; in most cases the experience is horrific > [NO KIDDING!]> . The venom is highly toxic. Before an effective antivenom was developed, significant bites usually resulted in severe symptoms and death was not uncommon.

The Sydney funnel web spider is mostly found near Sydney (from Newastle to Nowra and as far west as Lithgow but sightings have been reported as far north as Brisbane. Related species are found along the eastern coast of New South Wales.

The venom of the slightly smaller male spider is five times as toxic as the female. This is unfortunate > [ONCE AGAIN, NO KIDDING!]> , as male funnel webs tend to roam about, particularly after heavy rain in summer, and often wind up indoors… For some strange reason, human beings (and other primates and monkeys) are particularly sensitive to the venom, whereas toads, cats and rabbits are almost unaffected!

Atraxotoxin causes acute massive release of neurotransmitters at autonomic and neuromuscular junctions with associated uncontrolled autonomic hyper-reactivity and muscle twitching, followed about 2 hours later by neurotransmitter depletion and weakness.

Symptoms

The bite is usually immediately painful, and if substantial envenomation occurs, symptoms commence usually within a few minutes. They include, progressively:

Piloerection, sweating, muscle twitching (facial and intercostal, initially), salivation, lacrimation, tachycardia, and then (fairly rapidly) severe hypertension.
Vomiting, airway obstruction, muscle spasms, writhing, grimacing, pulmonary oedema (of neurogenic or hypertensive origin), extreme hypertension.
Unconsciousness, raised intracranial pressure, widely dilated pupils (often fixed), uncontrolled twitching, and death unless artificial ventilation is provided.
After about 2 hours the muscle fasiculations and most symptoms start to subside, and are replaced with insidious but profound hypotension, primarily due to severe cardiac failure> [WHICH WILL CLEARLY COME AS A BLESSING AT THIS POINT! DANG!]> .

You answered your own question in your post. It’s the Sydney Funnel Web that doesn’t mind a bit of a dip.

Ian

[Martin_Milner]

@gonzo914

@Cynth

I don’t think these two episodes could have done the Australian tourist industry much good.

Bill Bryson, in his book In a Sunburned Country, was writing about some kind of dangerous Australian critter (I think it was those blue jellyfishes), and he said it appeared on page 275 of volume 3 of the 6 volume set entitled Things That Can Kill You in Australia.

In the UK the book was snappily entitled “Down Under”.

I usually don’t understand why names of books and video games are sometimes different for the US and the UK, but this time I do.

[Lambchop]

@Martin Milner

@gonzo914

@Cynth

I don’t think these two episodes could have done the Australian tourist industry much good.

Bill Bryson, in his book In a Sunburned Country, was writing about some kind of dangerous Australian critter (I think it was those blue jellyfishes), and he said it appeared on page 275 of volume 3 of the 6 volume set entitled Things That Can Kill You in Australia.

In the UK the book was snappily entitled “Down Under”.

I usually don’t understand why names of books and video games are sometimes different for the US and the UK, but this time I do.

Why?

[Cynth]

@Lambchop

@Martin Milner

@gonzo914

Bill Bryson, in his book In a Sunburned Country, was writing about some kind of dangerous Australian critter (I think it was those blue jellyfishes), and he said it appeared on page 275 of volume 3 of the 6 volume set entitled Things That Can Kill You in Australia.

In the UK the book was snappily entitled “Down Under”.

I usually don’t understand why names of books and video games are sometimes different for the US and the UK, but this time I do.

Why?

Well, maybe it didn’t sell well because people starting thinking it meant like down under 6 feet of clay. I’m not sure really. Maybe in the states people are more scared of poisonous things. It’s probably a very subtle thing.

Say, Martin, if you don’t mind a silly question. Is there a difference between Great Britain and the United Kingdom? I am making a lot of progress in this area, but I realized that this is something I hadn’t thought about. Oh yes, I could google that.

Also, there is a phrase I come across in British novels and TV shows, mostly said by detectives I believe and I’ve just come across it in Dickens, also said by a detective. “It’s early times yet.” Do people commonly use this phrase nowdays? It is just something detectives say? I don’t suppose that could be the case. Just wondering if it is used alot and used currently.

[Jack]

I’m not Martin, but this is interesting:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Isles_(terminology)

Or, as my Welsh friend who didn’t learn English until she was 12 tells me, “Great Britain is a country where they speak Great British.”