Blacktown and North-West Sydney service area

Snake Catcher Tallawong

Tallawong puts new apartments and townhouses near a Metro station alongside established streets and the wider North West Growth Area. If a snake is visible, keep people and pets back, leave it an escape route, and call Snakes in the City for licensed capture advice. Do not try to identify it from a photograph.

Call 0411 103 488 · NSW wildlife licence MWL000102655 · Availability and access are confirmed when you call.

First describe which Tallawong you mean

The NSW Government Tallawong Station precinct plan identifies a growing centre around the Metro. Blacktown City Council’s contributions planning also treats Tallawong Station as a distinct growth precinct. A station-facing apartment courtyard is therefore a different access problem from a rear yard or an unfinished building lot. Neither setting proves a snake is present.

Apartment or shared garden

Tell the caller which building, lobby, lift and courtyard gate leads to the last-seen point. Ask residents not to cross the area; do not send a concierge or cleaner to search planting beds.

House, townhouse or garage

Keep children and animals inside, note whether the snake was at the fence, under outdoor storage or by a door, and avoid shifting items to “check”. A safe last-seen location is more useful than a guessed species.

Worksite or vacant edge

Give the site entrance, supervisor contact and any excavation, equipment or restricted-access hazards. Stop work close to the animal; no one should probe rubble, pipes or long grass.

Elevated view of Tallawong Metro station platforms and roof in July 2019
Tallawong Station in July 2019, a location reference rather than a snake record. Photograph by RidingStuff, Wikimedia Commons source, CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. Hosted in the Snakes in the City media library.

Act on the sighting; do not pursue it

Move back and keep a clear boundary around the last reliable observation. Do not corner, catch, strike or spray the animal. If it moves out of sight, report where it was last seen and leave nearby cover undisturbed. Council’s strategic planning map shows the Second Ponds Creek corridor in the wider growth area, but a waterway on a regional map does not mean a particular Tallawong lot has a creek or a snake on it.

The Australian Museum describes eastern brown snakes using open and modified landscapes and red-bellied black snakes as often associated with moist places. Those are regional habitat possibilities, not confirmed Tallawong sightings or a way to identify an animal from colour.

If a person may have been bitten

Call 000 for an ambulance immediately, even if they feel well. Keep them still. Following healthdirect’s snakebite first aid, apply a firm pressure-immobilisation bandage to the bitten limb and splint it if you can, noting the time. Do not wash or cut the bite, use a tourniquet, or try to catch the snake. Follow the ambulance operator’s instructions. Do not delay medical care for a catcher.

Where urgent help is available

People: public emergency department

Blacktown Hospital Emergency Department is open 24 hours at 18 Blacktown Road, Blacktown NSW 2148. Main switchboard: (02) 9881 8000. For a suspected snakebite, use 000 first so ambulance staff can advise the safest care pathway; do not assume a self-drive trip is appropriate.

Pets: Rouse Hill emergency vet

VECA Norwest, 7/2 Capital Place, Rouse Hill NSW 2155, lists 24-hour emergency care, seven days a week. Call (02) 9129 5800 promptly for current capacity and transport advice if a pet may have been bitten. Keep the pet quiet and away from the snake; treatment depends on the veterinary assessment.

These destinations serve different patients. A snake catcher cannot replace ambulance or veterinary care.

Business photographs: regional examples only

Harley Jones with a diamond python in a Snakes in the City photograph
Harley Jones with a diamond python. Genuine Snakes in the City photograph; not presented as a Tallawong call-out. Photo: Snakes in the City.
Eastern brown snake in Western Sydney grassland
Eastern brown snake in Western Sydney grassland. First-hand regional field photograph, not a Tallawong sighting. Photo: Snakes in the City.
Red-bellied black snake in Sydney wetland habitat
Red-bellied black snake in Sydney wetland habitat. First-hand regional field photograph, not a Tallawong sighting. Photo: Snakes in the City.

Arrange access, then consider the longer-term setting

When calling, give the exact address, last known position, whether the snake is indoors or outside, and any building manager, gate code, pets or worksite restrictions. Snakes in the City can explain the fee and scope before booking; an arrival time or capture cannot be guaranteed if access or visibility changes. After the immediate issue is handled, reducing loose building materials, unmanaged grass and rodent attractants can remove some cover without promising a snake-free property.

Snake visible at a Tallawong property? Keep back and call 0411 103 488. Suspected human bite: 000 immediately.

Explore public snake observations around Tallawong

Looking for broader wildlife context? The mapped place point for Tallawong falls in square D3 of our 2025 Sydney-region observation report. A suburb can extend into neighbouring squares; this is an orientation guide, not a suburb boundary map.

View square D3 around Tallawong in the observation report →

Counts apply to the whole square, not each suburb listed. A suburb appearing in a square does not mean a snake was recorded in that suburb. These are public observation records, not SITC call-outs, unique snake totals or a measure of danger.