Sunshine Coast family shocked to discover reason toilet was mysteriously flushing

A Sunshine Coast family was astonished to discover why one of their toilets had miraculously been flushing on its own for a couple of days.

At first the Doonan residents thought the toilet was broken and might eventually fix itself, but as the hours passed they decided to remove the panel behind it - revealing a reptile had been resting comfortably on the flushing mechanism.

An attempt was made to catch the brown tree snake which had been enjoying the facilities, but it managed to get away.

"The mum and two daughters were terrified. They didn't use that bathroom until it was gone," Luke Huntley from Snake Catcher Noosa told Yahoo7.

That was about two weeks ago, but on Sunday they got another chance to seize the snake.

"They knew it was back because it was flushing by itself again," Mr Huntley said.

The family opened the panel, saw the visitor and didn't disturb it before calling the snake catcher again, who this time successfully retrieved the reptile.

"(It was) probably looking for a drink of water because it's been so hot and dry," Mr Huntley said.

It is believed the reptile, measuring about 1.25 metres, made its way into the home through the roof and travelled towards the bathroom through the wall cavity.

A hole about the size of a 50 cent piece lead from the cavity into a panel containing the flushing mechanism.

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"In a rural house a lot of flushes is a lot of wasted water," Mr Huntley said.

Mr Huntley explained this particular species of snake can either be in a very good mood or can be a bit aggressive. He said this one felt cornered and lashed out.

"It was definitely long enough to have a long strike distance. I had to move quite quickly," the snake catcher said.

"That's why I use a hook... as opposed to putting my hand in a little space and tagging me on the hand."

The brown tree snake was released into the state forest on Sunday night.