We had a feeling that after our series of stormy days we would receive a call about something washed up and in need of help… and we did! Our first patient this winter was a gorgeous Elegant Sea snake. In relatively good condition, it was a positive sign that this girl would be the perfect candidate for a quick hospital stay before being released again.

After having a check-up and getting the all-clear from the vets at Perth Zoo, this beautiful snake was brought back to AQWA. Our first port of call was to place her in a freshwater bath overnight to remove a few nasty barnacles that had attached themselves. Barnacles are not very common to see on Sea snakes, as they shed their skin as they grow and are able to rid themselves of these organisms.

Sea snakes straight from the wild have proven very difficult to get to eat, however this girl ate on day ten after coming into care which was just incredible! This was a great sign that she is nice and healthy and needs to be released as soon as possible.

The following day we got the ok from appropriate authorities to release her back into the wild. The weather was looking good, so a quick boat prep and the mission was complete! This species of Sea snake can be found off our coastline, so she was taken a little offshore and let go out from Perth by AQWA staff.

She swam off with lots of energy and strength, gliding along the surface of the water for a minute or so before taking some deep breaths and diving down to the depths to explore her new habitat.

Check out her journey on our Instagram here.