The whole encounter was quite unusual, as eastern browns aren't known to regularly feed on carpet pythons, says Hill. The snake never regurgitated its giant meal, a sign that it was not overly stressed, and it seemed to be healthy as it returned to the bush. 'We weren't sure if it would be able to, but it did,' says Hill.Īfter that, the Hills took the snake several miles out of town to a wilderness area and released it. They left it there for about three hours, until it completely swallowed the sizable python. To allow the eastern brown to finish its meal, the Hills gently guided it into a black snake bag, where it could feel more secure.

( Watch a python devour, then regurgitate, an antelope.) 'It’s unusual to see this-it was quite incredible,' says Sally Hill. The homeowner called the Hills, who quickly arrived on the scene (and filmed some of it on their cell phones). When the python slipped into death-thanks to the powerful venom-the other snake returned and began swallowing its prey whole. After the initial battle, the eastern brown retreated for a few minutes. The neurotoxic venom of an eastern brown can kill a human being within 15 minutes if not treated with antivenin.

The large eastern brown snake ( Pseudonaja textilis) had attacked and bitten a nonvenomous carpet python, says Sally Hill, who runs a professional snake removal business in the area- N & S Snakecatcher-with her husband Norm. On Monday, a woman hanging up laundry in Goodna, near Brisbane, got quite a startle when she discovered one on her patio. Known as one of the world's most venomous snakes, the eastern brown of Australia is a formidable predator.

Eastern brown snake predators