Close call with wildlife!

[scubastutz]

Recently went for a dive at my local jetty. It's a shore dive and the usual entry is to jump off the platform about half way along, into 6 metres of water. This day there were too many fishermen on the platform so I entered from the shore, and proceeded to walk out the hundred metres or so to a divable depth. Did the ol' mask spit and as I rinsed out, a white tail spider emerged from its hiding place. For those who don't live in southern Australia, these spiders can cause necrosis at the bite site. Had I jumped from the jetty as normal. I would likely have ended up bitten in the eye as I put my mask on before jumping and de fog in the water!!! Not a pleasant thought.
Lesson learned.....ALWAYS check for uninvited guests! Anyone else had similar close calls?

 

[CuzzA]

Recently went for a dive at my local jetty. It's a shore dive and the usual entry is to jump off the platform about half way along, into 6 metres of water. This day there were too many fishermen on the platform so I entered from the shore, and proceeded to walk out the hundred metres or so to a divable depth. Did the ol' mask spit and as I rinsed out, a white tail spider emerged from its hiding place. For those who don't live in southern Australia, these spiders can cause necrosis at the bite site. Had I jumped from the jetty as normal. I would likely have ended up bitten in the eye as I put my mask on before jumping and de fog in the water!!! Not a pleasant thought.
Lesson learned.....ALWAYS check for uninvited guests! Anyone else had similar close calls?

I always hope there's not a bug in my reg before I pull that first breath.

 

[Regulatrix]

Recently went for a dive at my local jetty. It's a shore dive and the usual entry is to jump off the platform about half way along, into 6 metres of water. This day there were too many fishermen on the platform so I entered from the shore, and proceeded to walk out the hundred metres or so to a divable depth. Did the ol' mask spit and as I rinsed out, a white tail spider emerged from its hiding place. For those who don't live in southern Australia, these spiders can cause necrosis at the bite site. Had I jumped from the jetty as normal. I would likely have ended up bitten in the eye as I put my mask on before jumping and de fog in the water!!! Not a pleasant thought.
Lesson learned.....ALWAYS check for uninvited guests! Anyone else had similar close calls?

Wow, glad you dodged that venom-bullet! It never hurts around my patch to watch for snakes at the entry/exit or in that shallows when doing a river or lake (shore) dive. But while I've seen a snake swimming away from my soon-to-be entry point, I've not yet had an up close and personal encounter (and I hope to keep it that way). And even though we store our gear indoors, it's also a smart habit around here to up-end one's scuba boots (as well as one's street shoes) in case spiders or scorpions have decided to use them as their own Air BnB.

 

[drrich2]

Not quite like that. I've snorkeled and gotten closer to sea urchins than I should've (not stung yet). Waded barefoot in shallow water with sea grass, till I saw a bristle worm and decided that wasn't a good idea. Lionfish aren't above 'mooning' me to let me know to back off. I've settled on a deep, algae-covered wreck with a well-camouflaged scorpionfish laying within a yard or so beside me. Been near stingrays, and seeing one mostly covered in sand with mainly the eyes showing is a reminder to stay off the bottom (so is doing diving right over the bottom, a 'rubble crawl,' at the end of a shore dive in Bonaire and finding a scorpionfish on the bottom). Caribbean sea wasp jellyfish stings shore diving Bonaire (not a miss; I got stung).

 

[DAJ]

You would have been ok….now you just need to worry about all of the other things that can kill you down there

Dr Geoff Isbister, an expert in envenomation at the University of Newcastle, NSW, has published many articles and studies on white-tailed spiders...This phenomenon, known as necrotic arachnidism, has been falsely associated with the white-tailed spider…If you do get bitten by a white-tailed spider, the symptoms are similar to those of a bee sting.

The truth about white-tail spiders

 

[Sawdust82]

Not scuba related, but one time i grabbed a pair of shorts that were lying on the floor, pulled them on, and got stung right on the side of my... spot where no man ever wants to get stung... by a mud wasp. Wasnt as bad as i would have imagined, just some minor swelling (lol) and quite hot for a few hours

 

[Sawdust82]

Worst thing i find in my gear is earwigs in anything left outside, usually my weight belt

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Meh. Ran from drop bears in Clifton Gardens. Was this close to a horrific death.

 

[scubastutz]

You would have been ok….now you just need to worry about all of the other things that can kill you down there

Dr Geoff Isbister, an expert in envenomation at the University of Newcastle, NSW, has published many articles and studies on white-tailed spiders...This phenomenon, known as necrotic arachnidism, has been falsely associated with the white-tailed spider…If you do get bitten by a white-tailed spider, the symptoms are similar to those of a bee sting.

The truth about white-tail spiders

Who am I to argue with a clever person..... however, I have seen the results of a bite, and it was definitely a white tail and definitely an ulcer. Always a possibility that the bite transfers Bairnsdale Ulcer, which is common in the soil around here.

 

[chris kippax]

I was always taught to purge my reg before I put it in my mouth to blow the huntsman's out.