A routine patrol turned out to be anything but routine for two police officers who stumbled upon a "monster" scrub python.
The officers found the 16ft long snake in a road while they were doing a night patrol in a bush area in remote northern Australia.
But there was no passing in a police car until the python was "good and ready to move".
One of the officers bravely stood near the massive snake as it slithered into the bush, with a photo snapped by a colleague revealing the scale of the deadly creature.
Scrub pythons are the largest snakes in Australia with a steady diet of rats, possums and birds, although they have been known to devour full-grown wallabies and domestic pets.
The non-venomous snake was discovered near the indigenous community of Wujal Wujal, Queensland.