Creepy Crawlies

[Bermy Girl]

Okay, now not only am I going to stink, but I shall be hard of hearing as well because my ears will be plugged!! This is sounding great!!

For future reference I think ignorance is bliss when it comes to spiders...so

[MotherBear]

Originally Posted by MotherBear

....... tucked away in a lab is a spider that hunts other spiders, learns from its mistakes, looks before it leaps and might actually be smarter than mammals.

Probably never a truer word spoken when relating to the human variety of mammal.

[ShellBda]

Okay, I was looking at a website that gives you an idea of the the types of creepy crawlers that are in NZ and also whether they sting or bite! I tell you, I wish I had never looked at the website! I will be spending my days making sure the house is free of all bugs!!! Uugh! So, being the generous kind, I am happy to share the website with the rest of you - Landcare Research - Manaaki Whenua. New Zealand's foremost environmental research organisation. Home..

Enjoy.

[Bermy Girl]

I will be spending my days making sure the house is free of all bugs!!! Uugh! So, being the generous kind, I am happy to share the website with the rest of you - Landcare Research - Manaaki Whenua. New Zealand's foremost environmental research organisation. Home..

Enjoy.

Does that mean you'll be doing all the cleaning...

Gee, thanks for the link...NOT...

[MotherBear]

Originally Posted by ShellBda

I will be spending my days making sure the house is free of all bugs!!! Uugh! [/url].

Not wishing to spoil all this fun, I would say that you can have your house sprayed outside for about $120-ish and inside and out for a bit more. That should do the trick.

A cheaper option is Robocan . Clicking on FAQs will answer any questions you have about the product. It comes with a nice white cover, too, so it's aesthetically pleasing to the eye and the green pack contains natural ingredients, so is kind to the environment and personal health (if you're not an insect ) - and, no, I don't get commission on sales .

I have to say, it works a treat. We brought some back with us from NZ to help combat the mossie problem. Since we've been back we've hardly seen one mossie and we haven't even taken the can out of the box yet. Good stuff, or what?

[MotherBear]

Fungus to kill white-tail spiders discovered
NZPA | Wednesday, 1 August 2007



A fungus discovered on a dead spider near Lake Kaniere, on the West Coast, has been found to kill white-tailed spiders.

Canterbury University PhD student Nic Cummings made the breakthrough on a trip to the Coast, and now hopes to develop a biocontrol agent.

By last year, ACC spider bite claims had quadrupled, with 20,000 people paid $1.7 million for spider-related injuries.

Mr Cummings is now working with AgResearch scientist Dr Cor Vink to stabilise the fungus spores so they can be delivered to spiders, possibly using traps.

Vern Newcombe, from Community and Public Health in Greymouth, said they did not keep records on spider bites.

However, he said the white-tail spider itself was not poisonous. "It's the bacteria on the fangs. They're not venomous."

White-tails are dark grey and readily recognised by their elongated body form and a distinctive white patch on the end of the abdomen.

The Landcare Research websites says bites have rarely resulted in anything more severe than a red mark and localised, short-lived pain. As with bee and wasp stings, different people react in different ways.

From here .

[MotherBear]

Here's a new one to think about!

Venomous caterpillar stings three girls
5:00AM Friday August 10, 2007
By Martin Johnston


Gum leaf skeletonisers are widely established in Auckland.

Three Auckland girls were stung in a tree by venomous Australian caterpillars that have become widely established here.

It happened in February when the girls, aged around 10, were climbing a eucalyptus tree at their school in Avondale, today's New Zealand Medical Journal reports.

The hairy caterpillar, called the gum leaf skeletoniser, was first discovered in New Zealand in 1992 and is now firmly established throughout the Auckland region, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry human health adviser Dr Jose Derraik says in the journal.

The long-haired caterpillar, which grows to 25mm in length and develops into a moth, has brown and yellow markings. It eats the leaves of gum trees and closely related plants, although the young caterpillars do not eat the veins, leaving leaves "skeletonised".

Short, stiff, hollow bristles on the caterpillar contain venom that can be injected into skin on contact and even dead caterpillars can cause stings.

More here .

[KiwiHopeful]

Poisonous spiders, stinging caterpillars, Yahoo Serious ... doesn't *anything* good come from Australia?

[Welshgirl]

Originally Posted by KiwiHopeful

..... doesn't *anything* good come from Australia?

Rolf Harris?

[MotherBear]

Koala bears?? although I've heard that their personalities don't match their visual cuteness, as in 'totally lacking'.