I know many people fear spiders, but as a nature photographer fascinated by the plants and animals we share the planet with, I see them very differently. That said, before I picked up a camera, I felt that same fear myself. If you’re brave enough to read on, I’ll do my best to show that many of those fears are often misplaced and that with a little knowledge, you might start to see spiders in a different light.
As Dr Jeremy Wilson, Curator of Arachnids & Myriapods at the Western Australian Museum explains, much of our fear of spiders is learned. It’s shaped by culture, reinforced by those around us, and often persists even when we recognise it isn’t entirely rational. One of my favourite books is The Lord of the Rings, in which one of the protagonists is Shelob, a huge spider who lives in a dark burrow, aligning with how many spiders have been used in fiction to ignite fear in readers, showing how easily we can be made afraid of spiders.
Here in Australia, according to CSIRO, there are approximately 10,000 spider species, of which only around 2,700 have been scientifically described. They come in an incredible range of sizes and colours, from the large Golden Huntsman in Eastern Australia to the tiny and charming peacock spiders, which are some of my favourite creatures here in Australia. The most common group of spiders here in Australia is the jumping spiders, who, with their gorgeous eyes, are truly engaging to watch and pose no harm to us humans.
They can be found almost everywhere, from urban backyards, beneath rocks, in desert burrows, and high in rainforest canopies. In other words, there’s really no escaping them. Here on the Turquoise Coast, a quick look at iNaturalist records shows more than 50 species, with the golden orb-weaver, wishbone spiders, and various jumping spider species among the most commonly observed. Dr Wilson highlighted that spiders are often the main predators of many insects, such as flies and bees, serving as a form of natural insect control. Also, spiders are often an important part of the diet and lifecycle of many other animals, such as mud-dauber wasps, which stock their nests with paralysed spiders as food for their young, and are often preyed upon by lizards; spider silk from their webs is often used by birds in nest-making. Spiders are a crucial part of the ecosystem and an important factor in a healthy environment.
Despite this diversity, very few Australian spiders pose a genuine risk to people. In Western Australia, medically significant species are limited to just a handful, such as redbacks, and even then, serious outcomes are rare. With modern antivenoms and medical care, there have been no confirmed spider-related fatalities in Australia for several decades. In practical terms, most spiders people encounter in their homes and gardens are reluctant to bite and will only do so if provoked. In many cases, they pose far less risk than everyday hazards we barely think about, such as driving to work. I think it’s also important to remember that, if you do encounter a spider at close range, to remain calm by breathing slowly, and just wait for them to move along, as they’re often more afraid of us than we are of them.
I hope this shows that there’s much more to spiders than their reputation suggests. Without spiders and other invertebrate predators, ecosystems would be less balanced, less diverse, and far less functional. While it’s true that some species should be treated with caution, the vast majority are harmless, but all of them have a role in the natural world. From my own experience, I know how frightening spiders can be. But with a little understanding and a little bit of knowledge, it can become possible to see them in a completely different light and not as something to fear, but as something worth appreciating.
I would like to thank Dr Jeremy Wilson from the Western Australian Museum for his assistance in making this piece possible.
