Nature Notes: Snakes in the city, comet E3 and tiny forests grow

Snakes in the city

File this one under: things you don’t see every day. If you happened to be on the main street of Thirroul on Saturday, you’d be forgiven for thinking you’d stepped onto the set of a movie.

A small group of people gathered around as a local with snake-catching experience wrangled a very large red-bellied black snake! It had made its way along various businesses on Lawrence Hargrave Drive and, with all the traffic, had become quite stressed. It was successfully captured and relocated to a more suitable space.

Remember: don’t try this at home! Most snake bites occur when an animal is cornered or handled. Leave this one for the professionals. Read more about these beauties here.

Comet E3

There's a comet on the way and it won't be seen for another 50 000 years (if ever). For the Illawarra, February 6th looks to be the best bet for viewing. Comet E3 will be low on the horizon, and may be visible to the naked eye – it's always a bit of a guessing game with comets. Use a pair of binoculars or a telescope and look low to the horizon near Orion.

A tiny forest grows

There’s a set of lungs growing at a staggering pace at the Wollongong Botanic Garden. Near the Discovery Centre, is one of Wollongong’s newest Tiny Forests, spaces with a small footprint, filled with closely planted native species. These spaces are designed to grow rapidly, and the two garden beds in the Botanic Gardens, shaped like lungs, are proving to be doing just that.

In just four months, some of the seedlings have grown to head height! The northern side bed is filled with native plant species found in the foothills of Wollongong, while the southern side contains native plants found along our coastal plain.

Read more about Wollongong’s Tiny Forests here