Hi All, We were looking at wanted down under and was considering Aussie as a place where we could maybe set up in what appears to be a very good lifestyle. The other favourite was Canada.

However, considering the wildlife that seems to be in the home and backyard it makes us want to choose Canada as we have young children who haven't grown up with the locals.

How big a problem are the snakes and spiders ? or is the problem blown out of all proportion due to watching too much of Steve Irwin (RIP) ?

JET

What about the killer cougars, bears, wolfs and black widow spiders that'll be in your back yard in canada?

We've been here (Brisbane) for 6 months now and not seen anything dangerous. The only issue we had was our daughter couldn't play in the sand pit at school one day because there were redback spiders in it.

Oh yes, in summer you are always hearing about sharks biting surfers, but generally you hear the surfer telling the news reporter how they punched it

I wouldn't be worried with the crocs, sharks, jellyfish etc as I would kill them with my bare hands !!! Sorry I couldn't resist, no my serious answer would be that I would go to a beach that had nets etc.

The main concern would be the snake / spider question. The main problem area on programmes seems to be Perth ??? However I guess Sydney has the Funnel Web.

With regards to Canada, I would go to Alberta where I don't think they have the spider problem being too cold for them. Bears, wolves and cats are in the mountains but if you don't wander too much off the main trails I can't see them posing the same risk. In other words you have to go into their habitat !!

Am I talking rubbish ??

JET

You realise they, as in bears, wolves etc, have been known to come foraging into suburban areas of Canada and the US, especially into rubbish bins, tips etc, since human population centres have been encroaching on their habitat.

Your are worrying about absolutely nothing especially if you plan to live in a city or suburban area.More people are killed each year in Australia by falling trees hitting them the wildlife. Its a bit like saying l'm affraid of living in Australia incase a tree falls on my head ,becasue thats just as likely. Actually more people are killed by bee and wasp stings in the UK then are killed by snake and spider bites in OZ. There has'nt been a fatal spider bite in 30 years and only 2 snake bite deaths a year, compared to 1,600 people killed on the roads each year, thats the real danger downunder.
Sounds to me like you have never been to Australia before, once you come down here you will realise you are worrying about nothing.

Regarding the wildlfe danger to your children, its actually dogs that cause most death and injury to children in Australia, snake and spider bites are rare and with modren anti venom hardly anyone dies from them anymore, bees and wasps kill just as many people. Only move to Canada if you like that country better then Australia not because of an almost non-existant danger, don't people get killed by grizzly bears in Canada.

You plan to live in Perth and your fear is snakes and spiders. How many people are killed by snakes and spiders in Perth each year? Theres only been one spider bite death in Australia in the past 30 years and that was in Sydney, so you can rule out spiders as a danger. Theres around 2 or 3 snake bite deaths in Australia each year so lets say one of those happens in Perth every two years, sounds to me like your chances of surivival are pity good.

Think you've answered your own question there.

You better not come to Central Queensland! I have had about 4 different types of snakes here. The biggest was a 3 metre carpet python that popped in to have a drink out of our fish pond, I was so excited to see it that I forgot about my little kitten sniffing it with interest!! The cat is still alive and we relocated the python (harmless except to small animals). If you don't bother them they won't bother you, I have learnt to make a lot of noise when I am gardening so that any 'visitors' can slither away in advance.

If you live in a suburban area its very rare to have a snake in your backyard, unless you live insome outer suburb near bushland or something, regarding spiders they are no danger really, but if your affraid of them you can buy a spray at the hardware shop and spray your house every 3 months which would kill any spiders that come into your house. Snakes and spiders are more affraid of us then we are of them , they only bite in self defense when people pick them up or attack them, if you leave them alone they leave you alone.

Thank you all for the comprehensive answers. The wiji section here on wildlife is empty. I have never been to Oz, but the lifestyle is very appealing along with the climate.

Thanks again

JET

My advice is to make your decision based on which country you like best not the wildlife. Most countries have some dangerous animals, The USA has venomous spiders, snakes( rattlesnakes) grizzly bears , mountain lions and sharks that kill people.

The "wildlife" is my biggest concern, and I try and tell myself I am being irrational, but to me it's the biggest worry I have about the possiblilty of moving to Oz...some of the answers on here have been very helpful - thanks!

Its a bit like a fear of flying, if you look at the actually chances of something happening to you its totally irrational, as l said in one of my post more people are killed by falling trees in OZ each year then the wildlife. Alot of people who are killed by the wildlife in OZ do something delibertly risky putting themselves in harms way, like swimming in an area known to be dangerous and most deaths happen in remote rural areas not suburbia.

I have to say a big thanks for this post as it is an issue that had concerned me, I too have small children and worry about them playing outside. Also how easy is it to walk, parks, countryside etc?