An Australian dog walker rescued a baby koala from a python as its mother tried to fight off the snake.
Nell, who did not give her last name, was walking through Whites Hill Reserve in Camp Hill, Queensland, when she heard a commotion near the footpath.
“I ran over, and that’s when I saw the joey look me dead in the eyes, panicked, and the mum was scratching at a python as she tried to get it off her baby,” she told ABC News.
A 1.5m python had wrapped itself around the joey and was attempting to suffocate it. Nell sprang into action, grabbing the animal and uncoiling the snake.
“It all happened so quickly. All of a sudden I’ve got the snake in one hand and then the joey clutching onto my left shoulder crying,” she said.
She placed the python in a nearby tree before checking the baby koala for injuries and reuniting it with its mother.
Nell escaped harm from the snake, which she insisted was not the villain of the story, although the distressed joey scratched and bit her during the rescue.
She shared footage of the encounter online, hoping to raise awareness of the plight of koalas and encourage more people to volunteer to protect the endangered species.
She also called for greater government action to make their habitats safer.
Koalas are classified as endangered in parts of Australia, with slow reproductive rates making population recovery challenging.