Gordon Canning was out for a walk in Australia’s Arnhem Land, teaching children about reptiles, when the group came across two snakes entwined in what should have been a loving embrace.

Sadly, as Canning observed in footage recorded of the tryst, the female had been killed, her eggs spilling out on to the road.

“The video is of a road-killed keelback snake (Tropidonophis mairii) and a live male keelback,” Canning told Storyful. “Our group looks for reptiles to develop an appreciation, interest and awareness of their role in the environment, and to develop safe and protective behaviour when dealing with snakes and other reptiles.”

Children in the background can be heard guessing the snake’s name in the Indigenous language. Credit: Gordon Canning via Storyful