“These fish had a friendly (but quite large and scaly) visitor!”
Australian Homeowner Finds Giant Snake Relaxing in His Backyard Fish Tank
The other day, a homeowner in Australia got far more than he bargained for during a routine stroll past his outdoor fish tank. Something looked… off. And when he peered into the water for a closer look, he discovered a scaly surprise nestled among his unsuspecting fish.
Coiled up calmly at the bottom of the tank was a carpet python — a large, nonvenomous species native to Australia. While these snakes are known to occasionally turn up in odd places, this one seemed particularly at peace in its aquatic hideaway.
Not sure how to handle the situation, the homeowner contacted the team at Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7, a local reptile rescue and removal service. Within minutes, a trained catcher arrived on the scene to investigate the scaly squatter.
“These fish had a friendly (but quite large and scaly) visitor!” the team wrote on Facebook. “This snake would have either been getting ready to shed its skin, cooling down, or soothing irritation. Nice aquarium feature if you ask me!”
Thankfully, the snake appeared healthy and calm, occasionally raising its head above the water to breathe. Still, as relaxing as the fish tank may have seemed to the snake, it wasn’t the safest place for it—or the fish.
“That is the craziest place for a snake,” the handler can be heard saying in video footage, gently lifting the python out of the water and placing it into a relocation bag.
Miraculously, none of the fish were harmed, and the snake’s spontaneous swim concluded peacefully. The carpet python was later released into a more suitable habitat in the wild, far from unsuspecting aquariums.
While snake sightings aren’t uncommon in parts of Australia, this one definitely ranks high on the list of bizarre encounters. For now, the fish tank is back to hosting the kinds of residents that don’t slither.