A 10-year-old girl is recovering in ICU after she was bitten twice by a king brown snake in her bed on Monday night.
The Alice Springs girl was rushed to hospital about 10pm after copping the two bites, one on each foot.
Snake catcher Rex Neindorf said a bite by a king brown, also known as a mulga snake, was "very painful" and the girl "deserved a bravery award" for how she dealt with the terrifying situation.
"When snakes are inside homes they follow scent trails and this one had followed either a skin, gecko or mouse scent into the room and unfortunately gone up into the little girl's bed," he said.
"When inside the bed she's obviously moved her foot and the snake's gone bang.