Serpent makes special delivery

A WOONONA resident got an unexpected delivery last week, finding a 30 centimetre venomous Golden Crown snake in his letterbox.

Keith Murphy was cleaning up rubbish that was washed down the storm water drain outside his unit when he decided to check his mail.

He pulled out the junk mail jutting from the door of the box and noticed something dark in the left hand corner.

Without thinking he stuck his hand inside to grab it and was alarmed when the mystery object moved away.

At first, Mr Murphy said he thought the mailbox visitor was an eel.

He soon realised, however, that it was in fact a snake - and one that did not appear happy about being disturbed.

Mr Murphy, whose letterbox is at the top of a shared bank of boxes, told the Wollongong and Northern Leader that he thought his reptile friend may have been seeking shelter from last week’s bout of wild weather.

“I presume it came on the flood water and (my letter box) was a place of shelter,” he said.

“I presume it got access because junk mail had pushed the little door located on the back of the box open.

“Unless someone posted it to me, it didn’t have a postmark though.”

Mr Murphy tried to remove the snake but it dove out the front of the letterbox.

He later released the creature into the bushland near his Nicholson Road home.

Although he is used to being surrounded by wildlife, including possums, birds lizards and eels, Mr Murphy said he is concerned about the amount of rubbish he finds washed up in the nearby waterways.

A spokesman from the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service said Golden Crown Snakes usually grow to a maximum of 60cm and are venomous, but not life threatening.

He said the snake was probably hunting for frogs or crickets and added that people who find snakes in or around their home should leave them alone and contact the NPWS.