Red-bellied black snakes turn on freaked out cameraman during breeding season garden tussle

A gardener fascinated by snakes had to make a run for it when two red-bellies turned on him as he filmed a fierce breeding battle. He eventually fended them off with a leaf blower.

A gardener fascinated by snakes had to make a run for it when two battling red-bellies turned on him as he filmed – and he eventually turned to his leaf blower to fend them off.

The spring mating season is in full swing on the NSW east coast and snakes have been on the move to breed – and in the case of male red-bellied black snakes, to fight for females.

The moment two red-bellied black snakes turn their attention to gardener Craig Smailes.

Recently, Karin Hocking captured incredible footage of two “huge” red-bellied black snakes tangled up in a wrestling match in Old Bar on the Mid-North Coast.

“I was just amazed at what I was seeing,” she said.

“They were huge.”

Karin Hocking filmed two red-bellied black snakes battling it out for a mate at Old Bar.

Now, a Lake Macquarie gardener has shared a video of a pair of red-bellied black snakes turning their attentions on him while he films their mating season wrestle.

Craig Smailes, who works at the local PCYC, had finished mowing when a colleague called him over to watch the snakes locked in battle recently.

“People on the other side of the fence were on breaks from the shopping centre next door and were offering comment as to what was happening,” Mr Smailes said.

Craig Smailes was filming two red-bellied black snakes battling it out when they turned on him.

“The snakes were doing this for about two minutes prior to me starting filming.

“Everyone said that it was intriguing, and no one expected them to turn and chase me.”

Mr Smailes said one of the snakes was more aggressive and seemed to come right at him.

“He (the snake) eyeballed me as if saying ‘get outta here’,” he said.

Karin Hocking was mesmerised by the two red-bellied black snakes she filmed battling it out for a mate at Old Bar earlier this month.

Mr Smailes said that snake had a second go at him and “That’s when I used the leaf blower to ward it off.”

Red-bellied black snakes are highly venomous and capable of a serious bite if handled or harassed.

A breeding ball of pythons at Wauchope in October 2023. Picture: Kayle Wilson.

They are one of the most frequently encountered snakes on the Australian east coast and are responsible for a number of bites every year, the Australian Museum states.

Snakes display a range of unusual and eye-catching breeding behaviour – pythons create large ‘breeding balls’, for example. This phenomenon was caught on camera by Wauchope’s Kayla Wilson in October last year, as reported by this publication.

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