Six-Foot Snake Pulled From Beneath Restaurant's Deck

An extremely venomous 6-foot snake was found slithering underneath a restaurant's deck in eastern Australia.

In a video of the incident posted on Facebook, snake catcher Stuart McKenzie, from Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers, said that the "big, big" eastern brown snake had been spotted in an area where "a lot of people hang out."

He said the snake was one of the biggest eastern browns they had seen in this area. This species can grow up to 7 feet, though this is rare.

Later in the video, the snake catcher can be seen wandering the restaurant deck, looking for the venomous snake.

The snake can then be seen peeking its head out from under the deck. However it stays hidden. That is, until a bird walks past. This then lures the reptile out from its hiding place.

McKenzie approaches the snake and in one swift action picks it up by the tail. This is when the size of the snake becomes most noticeable.

Eastern brown snakes are native to Australia, and are responsible for more snakebite fatalities than any other species in the country. They possess the word's second-most toxic venom, which can shut down a victim's heart, diaphragm and lungs, all in a few minutes.

It is not uncommon to find the sames lurking around residential areas. They can often be lured to these areas by prey, including small rodents and lizards.

Thankfully, this eastern brown snake seemed "chilled out," McKenzie said in the video.

The snake catcher then transports the snake into a bag.

Even though the video only shows a few minutes of the catch, the snake catcher said it was actually quite challenging as it took about half an hour to find the hidden reptile.

"The birds came in, they spotted him. I thought that was going to be detrimental but they ended up actually forcing him out," the snake catcher said.

The eastern brown was then released back into the bush, away from people.

Despite being an incredibly venomous species, the eastern brown snake will not usually attack a human unless it feels directly provoked or threatened. The species will always prefer fleeing to attacking.

It is most common to see the species during Australia's snake season, from September until April. This is when the weather is warmer, meaning the cold-blooded species becomes more active.

Newsweek has contacted Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers for comment.

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