Incredible scene as python chokes down possum

Stunned Brisbane residents have watched an incredible wildlife display in their backyard as a python slowly and creepily swallowed a huge possum in a suburban tree.

In a rare and at times gruesome exhibition, the humble carpet snake kept neighbours in the suburb of North Lakes unable to look away as it devoured the marsupial on Saturday afternoon.

Fascinating video of the mammoth meal was posted online by Sigrid Westberg, which showed the reptile distorting its mouth as it hung from the branch of a Norfolk pine and progressively pushed the possum through its dislocated jaw.

For several minutes, a huge bulge stayed in the middle of the upright python, estimated to be about three-metres long, as the tail remained the only part of the possum not ingested.

The snake heaved its body towards the branch above to help swallow its catch, letting "gravity do its thing", as one spectator put it.

Eventually, the branch bends under the weight of the python as it drops its body in one dramatic move before the possum is completely consumed.

"Everyone was in awe. It was amazing how the snake wrapped its tail around the tree branch and supported all of its weight as well as the possum," photographer Caroline Hubbard told the ABC.

The incredible footage comes after the release of photos of a captivating battle between a snake and a crocodile in a Queensland lake.

Images of that epic duel have spread around the world and been shared thousands of times by readers stunned by the snake's unexpected win over the croc.

Source: YouTube.