Fake Halloween spiderwebs can trap and kill wildlife. We're calling on the Victorian Government to ban the sale and supply of loose, stretchable synthetic spiderweb decorations and restrict their outdoor use.

Please sign to support this change.

Artificial spiderwebs can entangle birds, bees, butterflies, flying foxes and small mammals, causing serious injuries or death.

BirdLife Australia and RSPCA Australia have both warned about these dangers.

A week after Halloween in 2025, I found bees trapped in artificial spiderwebs stretched across a hedge in Melbourne.

I spent 30 minutes carefully freeing as many as I could.

Most were already dead.

All because of a Halloween decoration.

And the danger doesn't necessarily end after Halloween.

Birds can collect loose fibres for their nests, where the threads can become wrapped around chicks, restricting circulation and causing serious injuries.

In 2025, RSPCA South Australia published an account from wildlife expert Di Hakof, who described finding an entire nest of young birds that had died after becoming entangled in artificial webbing.

Halloween also coincides with Australia's spring breeding season, when many birds are nesting and raising their young.

These decorations are often made from synthetic plastics, which can also leave harmful litter behind.

What we're asking the Victorian Government to do
We are calling for:

A statewide ban on the sale and supply of loose, stretchable synthetic Halloween spiderweb decorations.
Restrictions on their outdoor use, particularly on trees, shrubs, hedges and fences where wildlife could become entangled.
This is a targeted proposal. It would not affect rigid spiderweb ornaments, printed designs or other decorations that do not present the same loose-fibre hazard.

Halloween can still be celebrated with pumpkins, lights and safer reusable decorations.

This isn't about banning Halloween. It's about preventing unnecessary harm to wildlife.

No animal should have to suffer or die for a few nights of decoration.

Please sign to help protect Victoria's wildlife.

Supporting evidence
BirdLife Australia — Bird-safe Halloween decorations
https://birdlife.org.au/news/bird-safe-halloween-decorations/

RSPCA Australia — Keeping pets and wildlife safe this Halloween
https://www.rspca.org.au/latest-news/blog/keeping-pets-and-wildlife-safe-this-halloween/

RSPCA South Australia — Keeping pets and native wildlife safe on Halloween
https://www.rspcasa.org.au/keeping-pets-and-native-wildlife-safe-on-halloween/