Three-eyed snake found on roadside in Australia

Northern Territory Parks and Wildlife found the reptile, lovingly named Monty Python, on the Arnhem Highway near the small town of Humpty Doo.

Sharing the snaps on their Facebook page, they said: "The three-eyed snake warns The Dry is coming!"

Rangers say the snake measured around 40cm and was a juvenile.

X-rays of the snake were taken and revealed it had one skull, and not two heads forged together as was initially thought.

Northern Territory Parks and Wildlife said: "It was generally agreed that the eye likely developed very early during the embryonic stage of development. It is extremely unlikely that this is from environmental factors and is almost certainly a natural occurrence as malformed reptiles are relatively common."

Local media in Australia reported that the snake was found in March, and after three weeks in captivity it passed away.

It is thought the snake's additional eye meant it was struggling to eat, and as a result it became malnourished.

The photos have been shared more than 13,000 times on Facebook, and drawn thousands of bemused comments.

It is not the first time a deformed reptile has been found in Australia this year - a two-headed blue-tongue lizard was found in New South Wales.

Named Lucky, he is now being kept at a reptile park as reptiles that have deformities have a small life expectancy in the wild.