IT'S A FIBRE BALL

The answer to the question I posed on yesterday’s post as to the identity of this firm, fibrous ball, a little larger than a golf ball is – a fibre ball. A Western Australian government website, ‘Beachcombers’ describes it like this.

“The fibre ball comes from a seagrass called Posidonia or strapweed, which has ribbon-like leaves. The seagrass fibre balls are formed when the leaves break off in winter storms and get tossed around by waves and currents. This causes the fibre from the decaying leaves to tangle together. In the early 1900s, fibre from strapweed was collected for its high cellulose content and was used in the manufacture of suits, explosives and household products.”

The Shoalhaven has plenty of waterways for strapweed to flourish and extensive sandy beaches where wave action rolls the fibres into shape. There are thousands on the shores of Jervis Bay at the moment.

Another of Mother Nature’s secrets solved.