Investigation launched after horror video of kids using dead snake as skipping rope

Shocking footage has emerged of children using a dead snake as a skipping rope.

The video shows children from Woorabinda, about two hours from Rockhampton in Central Queensland, swinging the large, dead snake as others jump over it.

“Show me that, show me what it is,” the woman in the video says.

As the kids jumped and giggled, one of the boys said it was a black-headed python.

It is unclear whether the python was already dead when the video was filmed, but the clip went viral online, attracting hundreds of views on social media and raising the alarm from the Department of Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation.

”We condemn this inappropriate behaviour and will investigate the incident,” a spokesman said.

The maximum fine for a person found guilty of killing or injuring a black-headed python is $12,615.

The department urged residents to report incidents as they occur.

“The killing or injuring of native animals should be reported to the Department of the Environment, Science, Tourism and Innovation or the RSPCA,” the statement read.

Black-headed pythons are one of the largest snakes in the country, native to northern regions of Australia and have been seen from Gladstone on Queensland’s coast to the Northern Territory and Western Australia.

They are a non-venomous species that can grow to a length of 3.5m and kill prey with constriction.

The reptiles are usually very docile and harmless to humans and have been classified as a protected species under the Nature Conservation Act 1992.

If they have been seen in the area, the department recommends leaving them alone and calling a snake catcher to safely remove them from the area.