intercepted by quarantine authorities, often among steel or car shipments. They were introduced into New Zealand in the early 1980s and now are found around Central Otago (including Alexandra, Bannockburn and near Wanaka) in the South Island and New Plymouth in the North Island. Authorities in the United Arab Emirates warn residents and visitors of redback spiders, which have been present since 1990. Colonies have also been established in greenhouses in Belgium, and isolated observations indicate possible presence in New Guinea, the Philippines, and India. Some redbacks were found in Preston, Lancashire, England, after a container of parts arrived from Australia; some may have escaped into the countryside before pest controllers could destroy them. One redback was found in a back garden in Dartford in Kent. Two females were discovered in the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas in 2010. There is an established population of redback spiders in Osaka, Japan, thought to have arrived in cargoes of wood chips. In 2008, redback spiders were found in Fukuoka, Japan. Over 700 have been found near the container terminal in Hakata Bay, Fukuoka City. Dispersal mechanisms within Japan are unclear, but redbacks are thought to have spread by walking or by being carried on vehicles. In September 2012, after being bitten a woman was hospitalised in the Higashi Ward of Fukuoka City. As Japan previously had no dangerous spiders, signs warning about redback spiders have been posted in parks around the city. Predators and parasitoids The black house spider (Badumna insignis), the cellar spider (Pholcus phalangioides) and the giant daddy-long-legs spider (Artema atlanta) are known to prey on the redback spider, and redbacks are often absent if these species are present in significant numbers. Agenioideus nigricornis, a spider wasp, is a parasitoid of the adult redback. Other wasps of the families Eurytomidae and Ichneumonidae parasitise redback eggs, and mantid lacewings (Neuroptera and Mantispidae) prey on redback eggs. Bites to humans Incidence The redback spider has been historically responsible for more envenomations requiring antivenom than any other creature in Australia. However, by 2017 the spider was blamed for only 250 envenomations requiring antivenom annually. Estimates of the number of people thought to be bitten by redback spiders each year across Australia range from 2,000 to 10,000. The larger female spider is responsible for almost all cases of redback spider bites. The smaller male was thought to be unable to envenomate a human,