Two lovemaking kookaburra birds caused a power outage in Australia

It's an old-fashioned Romeo and Juliet tale of star-crossed lovers, or perhaps a love story where sparks flew a little too intensely.

Two kookaburras in a suburb of Australia were caught making love on a power line Wednesday afternoon until their untimely demise, which resulted in a power outage for around 1,000 homes.

An eyewitness saw a pair of the birds making love on the top of a pole until sparks literally flew, resulting in two large flashes and loud bangs.

When electricians for Australian power company Western Power got on the scene, they saw the two kookaburras dead on the ground below the power lines. It was caused by the female partner extending her wings in the midst of their mating, resulting in the wings touching separated power lines.

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"This action caused sparks to fly between the two birds as they acted as conductors for electricity between the separated lines," said Western Power spokesperson Paul Entwistle. It triggered an automatic emergency shutdown of the electrical network, resulting in the outage.

Power was restored about an hour later. Unfortunately, the birds did not survive their "amorous avian adventure" and died on impact.

"The two feathered fornicators were laid to rest in a private ceremony attended by Western Power staff later that evening," added Entwistle.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Two lovemaking kookaburra birds caused a power outage in Australia