What's biting in Australia right now
Bite activity in Australia peaks March, April, October. April is the busiest month of the year at 13% of all records. Narrow yours down below, then confirm it with a photo in the app.
This page tells you what's around. The app tells you what bit you — photo in, likely species, severity read and a day-by-day care plan out.
Download free for iPhoneNarrow it down in three taps
Free · nothing to install to get a shortlistMost recorded in September
Answer 2 more for a sharper shortlist-
Paralysis tick bite Strongest match · 92%Single. Usually up to two weeks; itch can persist longer.
Read the full profile → - Chigger bite Also possible · 88%
Clusters concentrated where clothing is tight. Usually 1 to 2 weeks of itch.
Read the full profile → -
Aedes mosquito bite Also possible · 49%Several bites, frequently on ankles and lower legs. Usually 2 to 5 days, longer in people newly exposed.
Read the full profile →
Photograph the bite in the app and it picks between these for you — with a severity read and what to do today. This page narrows the field; it does not diagnose you.
Confirm with a photoFree download · iPhone The year, month by month
Share of all recorded sightings in Australia. Pick a month to re-run the shortlist above for that time of year.
From GBIF biodiversity records, snapshot 2026-09-14. Records track when people observe and report specimens — close to activity, not identical to how often anyone gets bitten. Methodology.
What actually bites you in Australia
Honey bees top records like these because they are the most photographed insect on earth — read this as "definitely present here", not as a ranking of risk.
What is different about Australia
Southern-hemisphere season, plus first-aid advice that genuinely differs from the rest of the world. Copying American guidance here can make things worse.
Bed bugs, scabies and head lice ignore weather entirely — a bite pattern in the middle of Australia's quiet season points there first, see what is biting me at night.
- Breathing trouble, or swelling of the lips, tongue or throat after a sting
- A red area that is spreading, hot and painful — especially with a red streak
- Fever, chills or feeling generally unwell in the days or weeks after a bite
- An expanding rash appearing 3 to 30 days after a tick bite
- A bite getting worse rather than better after 72 hours
Call 000 for emergencies. Poisons Information is on 13 11 26 and is the right number for spider and tick questions.
The seasonal data behind this
Across 50,433 verified records for Australia, biting and stinging activity concentrates in March, April, October — April alone accounts for 13% of sightings, and June is the quietest month of the year. Australia is in the southern hemisphere, so this runs opposite to the European and North American season.
Australia is where standard bite advice most often stops being correct. Tick removal guidance here is the reverse of the American approach: freeze the tick in place rather than pull it, because disturbing a paralysis tick can trigger a surge of saliva. Pressure immobilisation bandaging, correct for snake bite, is explicitly wrong for redback bites. And the paralysis tick is the main local cause of mammalian meat allergy, which begins months after a bite that was long forgotten.
| Month | Activity | Share | Mostly |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 9% | Redback spider, Paralysis tick, Aedes mosquito | |
| February | 7% | Redback spider, Paralysis tick, Aedes mosquito | |
| March | 12% | Redback spider, Paralysis tick, Aedes mosquito | |
| April | 13% | Redback spider, Aedes mosquito, Honey bee | |
| May | 8% | Aedes mosquito, Honey bee, Paper wasp | |
| June | 3% | Aedes mosquito, Honey bee, Yellowjacket | |
| July | 4% | Aedes mosquito, Honey bee, Yellowjacket | |
| August | 7% | Paralysis tick, Aedes mosquito, Honey bee | |
| September | 10% | Redback spider, Paralysis tick, Aedes mosquito | |
| October | 10% | Redback spider, Paralysis tick, Aedes mosquito | |
| November | 9% | Redback spider, Paralysis tick, Aedes mosquito | |
| December | 8% | Redback spider, Paralysis tick, Aedes mosquito |
Calculated from GBIF biodiversity records for Australia, snapshot 2026-09-14. Records reflect when people observe and report specimens, which tracks activity closely but is not the same as how often anyone gets bitten. See our methodology.
Year-round regardless of season
Weather does not affect everything. Bed bugs, scabies and head lice depend on people rather than temperature, so a bite pattern in the middle of Australia's quiet season points to those first — see what is biting me at night.
Species linked to illness here
- Paralysis tick bite — tick paralysis, tick-induced mammalian meat allergy (alpha-gal), Queensland tick typhus
- Aedes mosquito bite — dengue, Zika, chikungunya, yellow fever
- Flea bite — murine typhus (Gulf Coast, California, Hawaii), cat scratch disease bacteria carried between cats, flea tapeworm (mainly in children who swallow a flea)
- Mosquito bite — West Nile virus, La Crosse encephalitis, dengue (Gulf Coast and Southwest, local cases), chikungunya (rare, travel-linked)
- Scabies rash — secondary bacterial skin infection is common from scratching
Most bites transmit nothing. What matters is the follow-up: note the date, and report any fever or expanding rash in the weeks afterwards to a clinician, mentioning the bite and where you were.
Stings rather than bites
Honey bee, Yellowjacket, Paper wasp, Fire ant, Carpenter ant are recorded in Australia. Stings differ from bites in one way that matters: they can cause anaphylaxis in sensitised people, and that risk does not depend on how mild previous stings looked. Anyone who has had a severe reaction should carry an adrenaline auto-injector.
Common questions
When are insect bites most common in Australia?
Sighting records for Australia concentrate in March, April, October, with April the single busiest month at 13% of all records. June is the quietest.
What bites people most often in Australia?
By verified records the most frequently reported biting and stinging species are redback spider, paralysis tick, aedes mosquito, honey bee, yellowjacket.
Does the bite season really run over Christmas in Australia?
Yes. Australia is in the southern hemisphere, so the warm season runs from roughly September through April. Northern-hemisphere advice about a "summer peak in July" is six months out of step here.
Stop guessing from a table.
One photo → likely species, severity, and a care plan you can re-check as it heals.