To Americans who say they will never visit Australia because of the spiders and snakes.

To Australians who will up vote this post.<br><br>This is not a post to bash Americans. I am an Australian who lives in New York and have traveled extensively throughout the US. The people, food and sights are amazing. The following is a constant conversation I have with people.<br><br>I regularly have a conversation with Americans who say they would love to visit Australia but won't because of our snakes and spiders. If you are one of these people I hope this post changes your mind and if you are an Aussie, I hope this post helps when you have this conversation with an American.<br><br>Australians know that spiders and snakes aren't that big of a deal, but we also know that Americans don't live in a county where these creatures are commonplace so it's time to give some perspective.<br><br>Perspective might be hard to picture in words so Imagining you're in Florida (or any other gator state) and you're going for a walk in a park just like you would in Australia. In this park there is a creek running through it where you know there is a reasonable chance of there being a gator in there. You're not in the water, just walking near it. For a local Floridian this isn't a big deal. For an Australian, this is a stupid thing to do, we wouldn't do it in a heartbeat. We can't comprehend the idea and wouldn't risk going for a walk through a park where there is a reasonable chance of a crocodile being in the water. In Australia we have crocodiles on one side of the country and everything else on the other so Interaction with them are rare for most of us.<br><br>What you need to know about Australian spiders and snakes.<br><br>Spiders;<br><br>We have 3 poisonous spiders. 2 can kill you and 1 can make you very sick. <br><br>- The funnel web spider is the spider that can kill you. It is ALL BLACK. It is extremely rare to see one in the wild, I've lived in Sydney my entire life and never seen one. If you're in an area where they are common, someone will let you know. One has not killed anyone since 1979.<br><br>- The red back spider is also deadly. It is BLACK WITH A RED STRIPE ON ITS BELLY. You will rarely see one in the wild. Again, one has not killed someone since 1979.<br><br>- The white tail spider is the third and will make you very sick but won't kill you. People get them confused with a lot of spiders that look similar to them. Honestly you can google them once and you'll never forget what they look like, they are so distinctive. Again I've lived in Sydney my entire life and never seen one.<br><br>The Huntsman spider is commonly mistaken as a poisonous spider. It is BIG and BLACK but completely harmless. They are actually good to have around because they catch mosquitoes. We leave them in our houses because we know they won't hurt us. I've held one before, they are completely harmless.<br><br>Snakes;<br><br>We have some of the most venomous snakes in the world in Australia but we barely see them. As with any country, you just don't go wandering in the bush. Stay on walking trails and you won't run into any snakes. I have only ever seen one snake in the wild and that was because I was walking through a park where someone had warned me there was a snake. It was a 3 foot long brown snake just sitting in a bush. I took a photo and left it alone, it wasn't bothering me and I wasn't bothering it. No one I know has ever been bitten by a snake and only know of 2 people who have seen one in the wild. One was dead and the other was in a zoo.<br><br>In conclusion<br><br>In my entire life of living in Sydney, the most populous city in Australia, I have seen one snake, zero funnel web spiders, zero red back spiders and zero white tail spiders. If you get bitten you have a 100% survival rate if you get treated promptly.<br><br>So the next time someone says that they won't visit Australia because of the spiders and snakes, send them this post.