Dangerous Animals
Like
in other places in Australia, we have some dangerous animals
in Cape York.
And like in other places in Australia, there is more of them in the water than on the land.
The only land dangers are poisonous snakes and spiders, and there is not altogether that many of them. You may hardly see one on your trip, and if you do, they don't attack you unless you give them a reason by provoking them.
Australian dangerous land animals don't attack you for other reasons than self defence. But water animals do.
Dangerous Animals in Cape York
And in the water, there are many more of them. The most obvious ones are crocodiles and jellyfish - both are only found in northern Australia.
Some other obvious ones are sharks, which are also found in the rest of Australian waters.
And some less obvious ones are the ones you hardly hear about, but they are there, and they do pose potential danger.. they include stonefish, marine snakes, blue ringed octopus, stingrays, fire fish, even cone shells - true. Water is the dangerous environment in Australia, not land.
Dangerous Animals on the Land
Poisonous Snakes
There are about 10 species of deadly snakes in Cape York. Some of the better known ones are coastal taipans (not the inland taipans), mulga snakes, western and eastern brown snakes, red bellied black snakes, and death adders. You don't want to step on one so and watch out when bushwalking.
Poisonous Spiders
Australia is famous for its poisonous spiders, but in fact there have been no spider deaths since we got the antivenoms. They can make you sick, and you still want to avoid a bite, because you do need to reach a doctor to get the antivenom.
Dangerous Animals in the Water
Australian Saltwater Crocodile
Cape York is crocodile country, and both of the two species of Australian crocodiles are found here. That, obviously, includes the deadly saltwater crocodile, which does not only live on saltwater beaches but also in rivers, wetlands and freshwater billabongs.
Deadly Jellyfish
If you go swimming in the ocean (which is a dangerous activity anywhere up here due to crocodiles), you have to read and obey jellyfish warning signs. The poisonous marine stingers Irukandji and Box Jellyfish are around roughly between October and April, and their painful stings can be fatal.
Killer Sharks
If you look at Australia-wide statistics, the number one killer on this page is shark. No other animal in Australia kills so many people these days. But, that mostly happens in southern Australia, and the species responsible is not found up here. We do, however, have some killer sharks here too.
Other Dangerous Water Creatures
Talk about a country of dangerous animals.. well it really is when it comes to marine animals at least! There are countless little creatures that are poisonous, some of the better known ones include marine snakes, stingrays, fire fish, stonefish, blue ringed octopus and cone shells only to name a few.
Plan
Your Trip... the FREE Cape
York Travel Pocket Guide
Bring
to the Trip... the full Visit
Cape York Destination Guide
If you liked the books or this website, let others know about it!
Link to it from your website, your blog, your forum post... Share it on Facebook, Tweet about it...
Every link helps other travellers!
Thank you for doing the right thing and letting others know :-)
