A New South Wales wildlife sanctuary has been forced to temporarily evacuate parts of its centre after a woman brought in a highly venomous sea snake.<\/p>\n
The managing director of Coffs Coast Wildlife Sanctuary on the state’s north coast, Tiga Cross, said the woman had found the snake stranded on a beach in Woolgoolga and picked it up wearing gloves on Monday.<\/p>\n
“They are one of the most venomous snakes in the world,” Ms Cross said.<\/p>\n
“She just brought it to the front desk and said I have rescued this sea snake.”<\/p>\n
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While sea snakes are among the most venomous snakes in the world, they rarely interact with humans unless picked up or disturbed. (Supplied: Coffs Coast Wildlife Sanctuary)<\/p>\n
Ms Cross said the elegant snake, named Coral after its rescuer, was brought to the centre in an unlocked basket, with nearby visitors forced to clear the premises as a precaution.<\/p>\n
She said sea snakes were more likely to lash out when distressed and outside their ocean habitat.<\/p>\n
“Obviously, being an animal in maybe not the best contained situation, we escorted all of the guests who were in our cafe and front of house area basically to move out of the area while we collected the sea snake,” she said.<\/p>\n
“We made sure everyone was safe. Just being on land, we didn’t want it to be scared and frightened, and latch onto someone.”<\/p>\n
Coral was brought to the centre in an unlocked basket, causing visitors to be evacuated from the sanctuary’s cafe and reception area. (Supplied: Coffs Coast Wildlife Sanctuary\u00a0)<\/p>\n
Ms Cross said it was the second sea snake brought to the sanctuary this week.<\/p>\n
“That’s probably unheard of for us \u2026 What we think has happened is a big swell out in the deep sea has caused an influx of swell, and these animals are washing up due to misadventure,” she said.<\/p>\n
“With sea snakes and most snake species, they’re generally pretty cautious, so unless they’re being handled or touched, they’re not going to maliciously try to attack someone, so if you’re swimming in the beach and a sea snake comes along \u2026 it’s going to be more scared of you than you are of it.”<\/p>\n
Ms Cross said Coral would be returned home once she had made a full recovery.<\/p>\n
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The elegant sea snake was named Coral after the woman who brought her in. (Supplied: Coffs Coast Wildlife Sanctuary)<\/p>\n
“Usually, there’s not a lot wrong with them, a bit of dehydration, maybe a bit of shedding, they just need a little TLC before heading back to the ocean,” she said.<\/p>\n
“People automatically think I’m gonna help it get back to the water, but unfortunately, once they’ve washed up they do need a little bit of care \u2026 and we do actually need to take them out on a boat into the deep water, they can’t get past those breakers.”<\/p>\n
Snake handler Stuart Johnson said while sea snake bites are rare, the woman who found Coral was lucky not to be seriously injured.<\/p>\n