Freezing temperatures have created a rare and bizarre ice spike in the Highlands.
Roadworker Iain Dobson spotted the inverted icicle growing out of a container lid which was filled with frozen water in Duirinish, Lochalsh.
Ice spikes have been reported as a rare natural phenomenon for decades although scientists continue to probe how they are formed.
They tend to form in containers such as bird baths and pet drinking bowls, where the water freezes quickly, rather than in large bodies of water such as lakes and ponds.
This particular spike grew into an oblong-like shape but they have also been recorded in the shape of ice candles, ice towers or ice vases.