You learn something every day: Sea Snakes

[El Presidente]

 

I had no idea sea snakes grew this large 

Washed up on a local beach. Taken to Australian zoo for recovery. 

Highly venemous. 

 

 

Beach walkers were greeted with a grisly scene on Tuesday, with an enormous snake stopping them in their tracks during their early-morning stroll.

They encountered a highly venomous stokes sea snake with a sizeable gouge out of its side on Sunshine Beach, near Noosa on the Queensland Sunshine Coast.

The walkers reported the startling find to Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7, with Stewart McKenzie telling news.com.au the animal was in noticeably poor condition when catcher, Matt, arrived.

“It was definitely unwell, it had a big injury to its side, like something had taken a chunk out of it,” Mr McKenzie said.

He was unsure if the snake, which had since been transported to the Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital, could be saved.

The fully grown adult sea snake, estimated to be at least 10 years old, was a standard size for its species, weighing between two and three kilos and being just over a metre in length.

[KCCubano]

Saw video last week of a Great White in Oz feasting on a mating pair. 

[Fireball]

The variety of animals unique to OZ is astounding. I am from the Midwest US and I would need to travel a couple hundred miles to get close to any wild animal that would pose a threat to me.

[MickVanWinkle]

I found a spider as big as my palm one time two years ago in my shed and have never been the same. I could never measure up to the people of Oz when it comes to pure guts.

[Ken Gargett]

9 hours ago, El Presidente said:

I had no idea sea snakes grew this large 

Washed up on a local beach. Taken to Australian zoo for recovery. 

Highly venemous. 

Beach walkers were greeted with a grisly scene on Tuesday, with an enormous snake stopping them in their tracks during their early-morning stroll.

They encountered a highly venomous stokes sea snake with a sizeable gouge out of its side on Sunshine Beach, near Noosa on the Queensland Sunshine Coast.

The walkers reported the startling find to Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7, with Stewart McKenzie telling news.com.au the animal was in noticeably poor condition when catcher, Matt, arrived.

“It was definitely unwell, it had a big injury to its side, like something had taken a chunk out of it,” Mr McKenzie said.

He was unsure if the snake, which had since been transported to the Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital, could be saved.

The fully grown adult sea snake, estimated to be at least 10 years old, was a standard size for its species, weighing between two and three kilos and being just over a metre in length.

they do get large. 

i remember visiting Hamilton island and on a boat trip to a reef or whatever, we had several bright yellow, whopping big ones swimming nearby. and they wanted us to get in that water. not at the point of a gun. 

they are not uncommon but you never - touch wood - hear of anyone getting bitten. they are usually quite timid and they are rear-fanged which means it is a big deal for them to actually bite a human and inject poison. not that i'd test it, but i was once told that it takes quite a few seconds for it to bite and inject, meaning you can actually pull the thing off before you get any venom.

i remember fishing up on the reef. one bloke dropped an expensive rod/reel over when in a dinghy. you could see it, fifty feet below on the coral. but a sea snake decided it liked the rod and curled around it. one of the deckhands dived in, swam down, pulled the snake off the rod and came back up. never seen anything like it. he was not in the least bothered and apparently had done it several times before. 

one occasion on fraser island, we were driving along the beach near where we'd been fishing earlier and a sea eagle plunged in and came out with a large squirming sea snake. flew off with it for dinner, while i desperately tried, and failed, to focus the camera. 

[Bill Hayes]

I think the olive sea snake in the tropics can be aggressive but most, as Ken said, have their fangs deeper inside their jaw. So they grab prey and suck them in to inject. Unless you stick a finger in their gob you're fine...... unless..... many of the smaller species love wriggling into gaps/holes etc. They've been known to wriggle into people's wetsuits to take shelter or a just very very curious. The best thing here is to stay calm apparently, ha ha, and let them find their way out without agitating them. I've been diving with sea crates. They actually live in the rocks on shore and then swim in the ocean all day to find food. They are only about a foot long with tiny fangs but scare the crap out of you first up. I was in Niue which is just a big volcanic rock posing as an island and tax free haven in the middle of the south pacific, kind of near Tonga and NZ but remote. Very deep water close to shore. Soon as we turned up in the boat I reckon over 50 little heads popped up to see what was going on. Just a touch unnerving to say the least. Anyhoo, I did get inundated by them but funny buggers. They are holding their breath but you can rest them in the palm of your hand and they don't care. They are curious. Can't grab them though because they can panic knowing they need to get to the surface. Great experience, except the dive master with the camera stuffed up the photos. With 40 metre plus water clarity they would of been awesome. I'm an ocean guy but don't give me rivers or lakes and brown snakes - they are big, lethally poisonous and very aggressive.... oh, and they like to swim fast. And as for those dudes in the US that noodle with their fingers for big fish hiding in holes in the banks of murky rivers, forget it. Ha ha! Oh, and bears. Don't like bears.

[Fireball]

1 hour ago, therealrsr said:

Not sure what part of the Midwest,

Ohio. I guess we do have recluse spiders.

That is funny about water moccasins. I mean, funny as long as I’m not there. I so hear that is a beautiful area though.

 

 

[cigcars]

19 hours ago, MickVanWinkle said:

I found a spider as big as my palm one time two years ago in my shed and have never been the same. I could never measure up to the people of Oz when it comes to pure guts.

     *If in the U.S. and that big it was probably a Garden Spider. They are non-venomous and can get quite enormous. I've seen their webs that fill the space of a tree limb high enough for us to use as a make-shift swing post and back to the ground, and a spider on the ground that the kids splattered across 4 city blocks. I've said several times that I could not be in Australia. I'm not young and spry enough to dive and slide out of the way of dangerous life forms anymore these days.