In 2006 the Herald Sun reported that an exotic South African bird-eating tarantula spider was sent to Australia in a film canister by airmail from Denmark. The live baby spider was seized by Customs in Adelaide. The spider, commonly known as a Goliath bird-eating tarantula, can grow up to 25cm long when mature. The Goliath tarantula, with its 2cm-long fangs, can cause severe pain, nausea and profuse sweating.
The baby tarantula, about the size of a 20c piece, was found at the Adelaide mail centre inside a photo canister from Denmark on June 22, 2004. The tarantula was seized because the importation of live animals without a permit was prohibited. Customs were continuing investigations to find the people behind the spider's importation.
The collecting of bird eating spiders for pets in North Queensland has also raised concerns about their conservation status. The Queensland government changed Legislation allowing the spiders to be collected from the wild for pets in the early 1990’s. We argued they shouldn’t do this, but the Queensland government rarely listens to logical argument. In less than 15 years, some experts believe that Queensland bird eating spiders have been heavily reduced in numbers by collectors. *
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment