Venomous Creatures? In a tiny office known as the spider milking room at the Australian Reptile Park, Emma Teni delicately wrestles a large Sydney funnel-web spider in a small plastic pot. “He’s posing,” she jests as it rears up on its back legs, allowing her to suck the venom from its fangs using a small pipette. With up to 80 Sydney funnel-web spiders milked for their venom every day, the park plays a critical role in a government antivenom program that saves lives on a continent where many animals are deadly.
Saving Lives with Venom
Sydney funnel-webs are considered one of the most deadly spiders in the world, but thanks to the antivenom program, no one has been killed by one since it started in 1981. The program relies on members of the public catching the spiders or collecting their egg sacs. Emma’s team drives all over Australia’s most famous city, picking up Sydney funnel-webs that have been handed in at drop-off points. “That spider there now, thanks to Charlie, will… effectively save someone’s life,” Emma says.
The Milking Process
The venom is extracted from the spider’s fangs using a pipette attached to a suction hose, collecting as much venom as possible. Scientists need to milk 200 Sydney funnel-web spiders to have enough to fill one vial of antivenom. The venom is then sent to a lab in Melbourne, where it’s turned into an antidote in a process that can take up to 18 months.
Snakes and Antivenom
The Australian Reptile Park also provides snake venom to the government, with species like the Eastern Brown snake, the second-most venomous snake in the world. The park’s operations manager, Billy Collett, collects venom from snakes, saying, “They’re not looking for people to bite. We’re too big for them to eat; they don’t want to waste their venom on us. They just want to be left alone.”
Distribution of Antivenom
The antivenom is distributed to major rural and remote areas, with vials allocated depending on the species in each area. Papua New Guinea also receives about 600 vials a year, with the Australian government providing them for free. CSL Seqirus executive Chris Larkin says, “To be honest, we probably have the most impact in Papua New Guinea, more so than Australia, because of the number of snake bites and deaths they have.” To date, they estimate they’ve saved 2,000 lives.
Conclusion
The Australian Reptile Park’s antivenom program is a lifesaving initiative that harnesses the power of venomous creatures to create antidotes. By milking spiders and snakes, the park provides the raw material for antivenom that saves countless lives in Australia and beyond. As Billy Collett jokes, “If you’re going to get bitten by a snake, Australia’s the best place – we’ve got the best antivenom. It’s free. The treatment is unreal.”