Australians are being warned to keep an eye out for a threat at the beach that few people think of when donning their swimmers and hitting the water.
Snake catcher Sarah Mailey told Yahoo News that snakes are ever-present at beaches, but they do a good job of going unnoticed, simply wanting to be left alone. However, a recent snake sighting at Hastings Point along the northern New South Wales coastline was made worse after a beachgoer attempted to interact with the snake, making it very defensive.
She issued a simple warning: if you see a snake, don’t touch it.
It seems like fairly obvious advice, but this week she had a tough time trying to rescue the highly venomous eastern brown snake after the beachgoer tried to take matters into his own hands before she arrived. It’s unclear if he was trying to catch or kill the snake.
“Beating the animal doesn’t help the situation. The majority of the time, you just injure it and it becomes someone else’s problem,” Sarah told Yahoo News. “If you do try to interact with it, you’ve got a much higher chance of being bitten.”
Sarah responded to a call from a member of the public who said the snake was allegedly “launching at people”, but she said the snake would have been feeling incredibly threatened following the interaction with the man trying to kill it.
Simple trick helps beachgoers avoid unwanted snake interaction
It’s not the first time Yahoo News has reported beachgoers’ close encounters with snakes, with a western brown snake – capable of killing a human in less than half an hour – sighted last year in Spinifex North Beach in Perth. Another eastern brown snake, the second most venomous snake species in the world, was sighted in Byron Bay in 2023, hiding just below some stairs.
A western brown was spotted metres away from beachgoers in Perth at Spinifex North Beach in Perth last year. Source: TikTok/sarahbrunners
Snakes are attracted to beaches as there are plentiful food sources there, as well as shelter and warmth. Keeping your eye out for one is the best way to avoid unexpectedly coming across one, and if you do, a simple move will ensure they leave you alone.
“The only good way to go about it is to just stand and let it pass, because it will pass,” Sarah said. “Otherwise, call a snake catcher and keep an eye on it until the catcher arrives.”
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