I have kept in contact with a USA poster who has just finished a trip to Australia and who has just had her trip to NZ cut short because she was bitten, in North Queensland, by.... wait for this, <BR>are you ready?<BR><BR>A duck<BR><BR>Well I knew that you had to be careful of crocodiles, sharks, stingers and cassowaries but our humble duck has now joined the ranks of those nasties. Apparently she was in a rain forest area feeding some kangaroos and wallabies when this duck, who was a bit agro, up and bit here leg. She applied antiseptic lotion but it became infected and she spent some time in hospital in NZ. She was also told that about 30% die from that type of infection. <BR>I guess the moral of this story is two-fold <BR>1/ keep away from our killer ducks<BR>2/ make sure you have adequate health insurance<BR>I hope that she will post a message on the board herself eventually when she has fully recovered and may this one be the only attempted murder by a duck in Australia.<BR> <BR>

Liz,<BR><BR>I got the email update from the poster as well (I noticed you were on the email list also). I almost laughed in disbelief. Poor girl. Then I had to wonder...are your ducks different from ours here in the states? I had an image of a beast, about 3 feet high with a snarly look and the teeth of a lion! <BR><BR>Of all things, a duck. =/

Obviously our ducks are dirtier than the average duck and carry more salmonella bacteria which I guess is what happened. Dirty little beasts.<BR>I'd be making hay here though if I were her - at least it would be a 18ft man eating crocodile which I bravely fought off over a period of 1 hour ......or something.<BR>I agree Mina it was the most rotten luck.

And incredibly embarrassing...........

Liz, I did tell her she's come back with the "best" story I ever heard. You're right, she should milk this one for all it's worth.<BR><BR>I didn't escape Australia unscathed either. One of my guides on a reef tour decided he was tired of being a responsible guide and disappeared through a small opening in the reef and dove downward. Not being the most experienced diver, and having no idea where I was, I tried to follow him down the hole and got majorly cut up in the process. Of course, that later led to coral poisoning and the cuts took weeks to heal.<BR><BR>I'm telling you, you Australians have it all!

Killer Ducks!!! I thought Japan had it bad with Godzilla and Mothra smashing thier cities to pieces. <BR><BR>Honestly, you people need to do a better job of maintaining your side of the Pacific.

Poor Mina, coral poisoning is not nice either and I hope that you had something to say to that particular dive guide. Sometimes they are too cocky for their own good and need to be brought down a peg or two. <BR>Ryan, I am sure that we shall try and do better in the future, either that or we could train those killer ducks to go for the right people, like a squad of Duck Green Berets (sp?) or something trained to attack any coastal drug smugglers.