Venomous Sea Snake 'Scares Living Daylights' Out of Snorkeler in Coral Sea

A venomous olive sea snake “scared the living daylights” out of a woman snorkeling off Australia’s east coast, tense footage posted online shows.

The video, by underwater filmmaker and adventurer Dean Cropp, shows crew member Emily being circled by the potentially deadly sea creature.

“It was very, very scary,” said Cropp, who was diving in the Coral Sea at the time, shooting for his Bluewater Safari television series.

“This olive sea snake was heading to the surface to breathe when it found Emily, and it was love at first sight,” he said. “The snake was so very curious about her, much to Emily’s horror.”

He said the snake “slithered around her legs, under her arm and around her body” while Emily remained still, frozen with fear.

“The snake then moved around her hair and neck, licking her with its forked tongue,” Cropp said.

He added that he can be heard laughing in the background in “an effort to keep her calm”.

After surfacing, a relieved Emily says, “This is life in the Coral Sea … brushes with death on the daily.”

According to Oceana, olive sea snakes “rarely bite people” but that “their bites have been known to be fatal.” Credit: Dean Cropp via Storyful

Video transcript

[SCREAMS]

- Friendly little guy, that one.

[LAUGHS]

Wow! This is life in the Coral Sea. Brushes with death on the daily.

[SCREAMS]

Friendly little guy, that one.

[LAUGHS]

Wow! This is life in the Coral Sea.

[LAUGHS]

Brushes with death on the daily.