I've never seen a saltie in the wild; I steer clear of beaches where sharks seem to congregate; and I've probably only seen a half dozen or so live snakes in the 46 years I've lived here.... and it's not like I've gone out of my way to avoid their habitats. I spent a lot of time horse riding in the bush when I was younger, but very rarely encountered any. Generally speaking, if you leave them alone they'll leave you alone.
I can't say the same for spiders, though. About 25 years ago I was bitten by a white tail spider and suffered a severe reaction to the bite. I lost quite a bit of soft tissue on my lower left leg from a necrotising bacteria found in the spider's digestive enzymes. Luckily the treating doctor knew the best course of action and halted the process before it ate too far into the muscle. Not all victims are so lucky! I met a bloke who still had problems some 8 years after he was bitten, with the area of the bite still quite a mess and needing thrice daily dressings.
At the end of the day however, one has probably a greater chance of getting maimed or killed on the roads. True, we have some dangerous wildlife, but its not as much a threat to life and limb as perhaps the media make it out to be. There are those who take risks, often foolishly by ignoring the warnings/danger signs, but like me, most people never see these creatures up close.
Truth be told, one is more likely to encounter vermin of the insidious kind in Canberra. Yup, the critters down there have a necrotising effect on the entire country, unless of course one is rich and donates to the Liberal Party.
