At first glance it looks like an innocent photograph, showing a duck relaxing by the grassy banks of a pond.

But when the woman who spotted it went for a closer look, she got a rather rude awakening and found it was something else entirely.

The image was taken in Samuel Renfrey Reserve in Mandurah, south of Perth in Western Australia.

It was posted on social media before it attracted some hilarious comments, reported WA Today.

A woman got the shock of her life in a suburban park recently, after she approached what she thought was a duck sitting near a lake (pictured)

It was only when she came close that the woman discovered the duck was actually a large black sex toy.

The woman's assumption was understandable, given there were several ducks seen in the lake nearby.

The photo was shared on a Perth Facebook page, where it was met with plenty of hilarious comments.

One comment said that from a distance, the toy seemed to resemble the Loch Ness monster, the mythical sea creature which lives in the Scottish Highlands.

The City of Mandurah told Daily Mail Australia the incident had not been reported to them.