Along a beach on Yorke Peninsula I came across a sea snake in a 'puddle' as the tide was going out. It was about 30cm long, and skinny, and if I hadn't taken a second look I could have walked past thinking it was just a strand of seaweed. I took a second look because it's slight movements didn't fit what seaweed would have done in a puddle disconnected from the ocean. The snake was squirming in the puddle as the water was warming in the summer sun.
Excerpt from [0]:
"All sea snakes discovered so far are venomous and produce some of the most dangerous venoms known in the animal kingdom but most species are considered to be non-aggressive."
I could have stepped on this damn thing thinking it was seaweed, and I'm sure that would have inspired some aggression that I could have found existentially distressing.
In the most Aussie scenario possible, a passerby saved the snake by taking their thongs (flip-flops) off, picking up the snake between the soles of the two thongs, and taking it to where the tide still reached. It swam off energetically.
Unrelated story:
A few hundred metres up the same beach, where the sand meets rock pools under some cliffs, my (at the time ~7 year-old) son calls out "I found a squid", then 10 seconds later "it's turning blue!". His mother and I both immediately screamed DON'T TOUCH IT and started running towards him. He didn't touch it. It was a blue-ringed octopus[1]. Australian kids learn about them in primary school.
Here in the far southwest of the continent we've never had to worry about seasnakes, though as you say we are taught from age ~8? about stonefish, various jellies, sharks, blue-ringed octopus, conefish. Even normal octopus have a venomous bite, they just run away instead... we're also taught that any scratch contracted from coral is likely to get infected since marine-species bacteria is more aggressive or something... any diver will tell you that is false though.
I've had 3 Blue Ring Octopus sightings that I recall personally. The largest one I've ever seen was the size of a grapefruit; I had never heard of one so big before, but the tentacles were short and the rings were vibrant and it moved in my direction and I was veritably running on water in the opposite direction when I realised what I was looking at.
I had never heard of blue-ringed octopuses before. Thank you for educating me. From the wikipedia article:
>The blue-ringed octopus, despite its small size, carries enough venom to kill 26 adult humans within minutes. Their bites are tiny and often painless, with many victims not realizing they have been envenomated until respiratory depression and paralysis begins. No blue-ringed octopus antivenom is available.
Australia is a beautiful country and I have relatives there. I'd love to visit them, once the whole pandemic thing is over. I don't think I'm going to go swimming.
It's really sad that (most) animals don't understand when we want to save them from a perilous situation, and instead get frightened, and/or aggressive. Always lessens the feeling of having done a good thing to realize that the animal probably thought I was trying to eat it, with all the stress and panic that entails. But then again I might be humanizing them too much.
P.S. I can't imagine the stress of having small kids in an area with deadly animals. It's bad enough here in Austria, were there aren't as many dangers by far. Kids are too curious for their own good.
There's a ban on overseas travel from Australia. If you're an Australian citizen or permanent resident, you can't leave Australia unless you get an exemption to travel or you're travelling to a destination that's exempt from the ban. Foreign citizens are able to depart Australia at any time.
Australia is the only Western country which has an exit ban on citizens. There are so many people who got rejected and can't leave Australia despite having dual citizenship.
The whole situation made me reconsider applying for PR and moving to Canada instead.
Interesting read, I don't believe I've ever encountered a sea snake myself, but I have a general rule to avoid snakes. Growing up in Texas, I was used to looking out for the venomous ones we had out on the ranch, i.e., copperheads, water moccasins (aka cottonmouth), rattle snakes, and coral snakes. Luckily none of us have ever been bitten, but we have had dogs get bitten.
I recently found out that there was actually a lack of antivenom for coral snake bites in the US, but it appears that this has just recently changed [1].
When I first moved to Germany I asked some friends what sort of snakes I should watch out for in the forest; I got some funny looks and laughs from that.
>When I first moved to Germany I asked some friends what sort of snakes I should watch out for in the forest; I got some funny looks and laughs from that.
I think that the yellow-bellied, or pelagic sea snake (Hydrophis platurus) is my favourite snake I've ever caught & photographed - because it looks so different with the fin-like tail; the fact it is apparently the second-most toxic snake on the planet; and how we had to charter a boat and convince the captain of what we were trying to do to get one!
Absolutely gorgeous creature - and apparently they also can't really swim - they just get carried on currents to get around!
[+] [-] BLKNSLVR|4 years ago|reply
Excerpt from [0]:
"All sea snakes discovered so far are venomous and produce some of the most dangerous venoms known in the animal kingdom but most species are considered to be non-aggressive."
I could have stepped on this damn thing thinking it was seaweed, and I'm sure that would have inspired some aggression that I could have found existentially distressing.
In the most Aussie scenario possible, a passerby saved the snake by taking their thongs (flip-flops) off, picking up the snake between the soles of the two thongs, and taking it to where the tide still reached. It swam off energetically.
Unrelated story: A few hundred metres up the same beach, where the sand meets rock pools under some cliffs, my (at the time ~7 year-old) son calls out "I found a squid", then 10 seconds later "it's turning blue!". His mother and I both immediately screamed DON'T TOUCH IT and started running towards him. He didn't touch it. It was a blue-ringed octopus[1]. Australian kids learn about them in primary school.
[0]: http://www.mesa.edu.au/sea_snakes/
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-ringed_octopus
[+] [-] samplatt|4 years ago|reply
I've had 3 Blue Ring Octopus sightings that I recall personally. The largest one I've ever seen was the size of a grapefruit; I had never heard of one so big before, but the tentacles were short and the rings were vibrant and it moved in my direction and I was veritably running on water in the opposite direction when I realised what I was looking at.
[+] [-] azalemeth|4 years ago|reply
>The blue-ringed octopus, despite its small size, carries enough venom to kill 26 adult humans within minutes. Their bites are tiny and often painless, with many victims not realizing they have been envenomated until respiratory depression and paralysis begins. No blue-ringed octopus antivenom is available.
Australia is a beautiful country and I have relatives there. I'd love to visit them, once the whole pandemic thing is over. I don't think I'm going to go swimming.
[+] [-] dEnigma|4 years ago|reply
P.S. I can't imagine the stress of having small kids in an area with deadly animals. It's bad enough here in Austria, were there aren't as many dangers by far. Kids are too curious for their own good.
[+] [-] unknown|4 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] robertwt7|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] shell0x|4 years ago|reply
https://www.smartraveller.gov.au/COVID-19/leaving-Australia
There's a ban on overseas travel from Australia. If you're an Australian citizen or permanent resident, you can't leave Australia unless you get an exemption to travel or you're travelling to a destination that's exempt from the ban. Foreign citizens are able to depart Australia at any time.
Australia is the only Western country which has an exit ban on citizens. There are so many people who got rejected and can't leave Australia despite having dual citizenship.
The whole situation made me reconsider applying for PR and moving to Canada instead.
[+] [-] Clewza313|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] asciimike|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] riffraff|4 years ago|reply
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-01-09/melioidosis-risk-spre...
[+] [-] jeromenerf|4 years ago|reply
[+] [-] cameronperot|4 years ago|reply
I recently found out that there was actually a lack of antivenom for coral snake bites in the US, but it appears that this has just recently changed [1].
When I first moved to Germany I asked some friends what sort of snakes I should watch out for in the forest; I got some funny looks and laughs from that.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coral_snake#Antivenom_shortage
[+] [-] ksec|4 years ago|reply
Why? Because there aren't any snakes in Germany ?
[+] [-] canadianfella|4 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] helloimbob|4 years ago|reply
Absolutely gorgeous creature - and apparently they also can't really swim - they just get carried on currents to get around!