Giant 16ft carpet python spotted crawling on Australian roof and into trees

Teeth-clenching footage has been shared showing a giant 5-metre snake crawling across an Australian family's roof and into a tree.

The video was shared on TikTok, showing the 16-foot Australian carpet python, which is known to only grow up to 13 feet in length, slithering through a Queensland property.

The family, who were sitting down for lunch, recorded the snake moving from the roof of a house to a nearby tree. 

"They're freaky aren't they," one woman said.

"He's quite beautiful," another woman added.

A young boy, in awe of the snake, asked, "Is it a tree snake?" "No he's a carpet snake, darling," an older woman responds, to which the boy asks "Then how can he climb trees?"

TikTok viewers shared their reactions to the video in the comments.

"I am not strong enough to survive this continent," one user said.

"Does Australia know they're the only ones still living with dinosaurs?" another asked.

"I already know that's somewhere in Queensland and for that reason I'll never live there," another added.

Several others wondered how the snake accomplished the shocking alpinism.

Snake experts have said carpet pythons can scale trees due to their evenly distributed muscles, which hold them up.

"They reach out for a strong point, then they use muscle and weight to hold themselves up before stretching out to the next spot," Sunshine Coast snake catcher Dan told Yahoo News.

He added, "It's quite common to see carpet pythons in trees, either soaking up the sun, avoiding dogs or people or hunting birds and possums. I find more pythons on the ground hunting than I do in the trees, but it’s not uncommon."

He also warned viewers not to get too close to these beasts, warning they could bite if they feel threatened.

"Carpet pythons have 80 to 100 small teeth so a large one can absolutely cause damage if it gets a hold of you," he cautioned.

The video has received 17 million views on TikTok.