Australian Spiders

Spiders

Keeping Spiders out of the house

Most people have their houses sprayed by a Pest Control company on an annual basis, and this definately helps to keep most insects away. The cost of this may be around the $200 price.

Something that I feel works well for spiders, is an “Electronic Pest Control”. I was sceptical at first, but for about $40 I decided to try one.
I tested it in a place that had a large spiders web with a permanent spider.
24 hours after I positioned the unit, about 6 feet away, the spider had gone, and didn’t return.
After 1 week, I moved the unit to the kitchen, and it has been there for 5 years now.
I never see a spider in the kitchen, or even outside the kitchen.
I think it works.

How Dangerous are Spiders

A useful page from the Australian Museum Online about Spiders.

What I consider an IMPORTANT point, is this section:

Q: How many dangerous spider bites occur in Australia each year? Has anyone died from a bite recently?

A: There have been no deaths in Australia from a confirmed spider bite since 1979
An effective antivenom for Redback Spiders was introduced in 1956, and one for funnel-web spiders in 1980.
These are the only two spiders that have caused deaths in Australia in the past.

A spider bite is not a notifiable medical emergency, so there are no Australia-wide statistics, but the following figures give an idea of the incidence of reported bites in recent years.

Approximately 2000 people are bitten each year by Redback Spiders

Funnel-web spider antivenom has been given to at least 100 patients since 1980.

Antivenom is given only when signs of serious envenomation are observed. Many spider bites are ‘blank’, which means that no venom has been injected.

During 2000 the New South Wales Poisons Information Centre received 4,200 calls about spiders.
However not all of these would have involved actual bites.
Many reported bites are not able to be identified as definitely being from a spider, and it is nearly impossible to work out what species has caused a bite without seeing a specimen of the spider responsible.

Spider Bites

First aid treatment for spider bites is different for different spiders.

Funnel web spiders (Eastern Australia), are the most dangerous of all the world’s spiders.
Red back spider bites are common, but rarely cause death.
Huntsman spiders come into houses especially in summer. They are usually timid, but bites cause pain around the bite and occasionally headache and vomiting.

A useful source of info at: Spider Bites: South Australian Government Website