By Jim O’Toole, Townsville Bureau
A reported sighting of a salt water crocodile near Stradbroke Island turned out to be a dugong. After viewing social media footage Cairns News agrees the sighting was not a croc.
After 60 reported sightings of crocs in and around Cairns beaches and northern suburbs over the last month, any surface water is out of bounds until the excessive numbers are cleaned up preferably by shooting.
Mareeba on the northern Tablelands once was free of crocs in its waterways but since numerous small crocs escaped from a local croc farm during the massive Cyclone Yasi in 2011 they populated Two Mile Creek, small streams, Barron River and Granite Creek, all within walking distance of the town’s CBD.
Croc farms and zoos are overloaded with salties and do not want any more, especially over two metres long.
But the idiotic policy of the state Labor corporation is to catch and relocate crocs giving somebody else the problem.
Anyone silly enough to dip their toes in the Ross River in Townsville or the Barron River in Cairns deserves to be snapped up.
However there is plenty of anecdotal evidence of crocs living in southern Queensland waters over the years.
In the 70’s fishermen were quoted in the Gympie and Sunshine Coast media seeing salties in creeks and near beaches.
The Mary River at Maryborough was home to large crocs in the 60’s, indeed relatives of this scribe saw a monster alongside their dinghy when fishing in the Mary River circa 1965.
There were also claims of crocodiles being shot by farmers in the Mary River in the 70’s.
With the great explosion of saltie numbers from the Torres Strait to Gladstone it is not unrealistic to expect these deadly saurians to be seen in southern waters after being pushed out of usual territory by larger aggressive males..
The Queensland Labor Corporation claim only some salties are dangerous to humans but Aborigines and Islanders have long warned, in spite of this nonsense, that every saltie is dangerous from one foot long to 25 feet long.
Two years ago we invited wildlife officers who said they would only remove dangerous crocs from Cairns beaches, to get into the water and identify which ones should be removed.
Needless to say none of the state’s armchair experts took up the offer.
About five years ago several of our contributors passed on Facebook comments and a photo of a saltie seen in the Brisbane river.
Unfortunately the photo was lost in the ether.
Far Northern federal member Bob Katter yesterday commented on the Stradbroke sighting sternly advising media he “did not put any crocs near Straddie.”
He did however tell wildlife rangers that it “should be shot” because it was too close to people.
Absolutely correct Mr Katter.
Too many crocs ? I reckon they are good tucker. Tastes rather like crayfish. The skin can also be used , do not waste anything.I would prefer that to meal worms and bugs,.
tonyryan43 said – “As somebody who lives among crocodiles in Arnhem Land, I can say that any croc over two metres in length is possibly dangerous if it is very hungry. If it is not hungry, and it is not mating season, which makes them territorial, an attack is unlikely.”
One thing pushed by various “experts” and docos is that crocodiles behave instinctively according to whatever environmental stimulus is wafted their way.
Having watched a video of a pack of 15+ foot Nile Crocodiles basking on a river bank, with an ultra-cutesy baby hippo frolicking in amongst them and even jumping up and down on them, cast some doubt on that “instinctive” theory.
Mama Hippo was right there – and the crocodiles knew it.
“The Queensland Labor Corporation claim only some salties are dangerous to humans but Aborigines and Islanders have long warned, in spite of this nonsense, that every saltie is dangerous from one foot long to 25 feet long”.
Why would anybody have the remotest interest in what the Qld Labor Government has to say about crocs? And the comment ascribed to unidentified Aborigines and Islanders is clear nonsense.
As somebody who lives among crocodiles in Arnhem Land, I can say that any croc over two metres in length is possibly dangerous if it is very hungry. If it is not hungry, and it is not mating season, which makes them territorial, an attack is unlikely.
All this talk of croc population explosions is pure poppycock. And this ranting about shootouts exposes the anti-nature neurosis of those who do not live with the consequences. So let me tell you what happens when you open that floodgate.
The prime target for shooting is always the biggest salties. These are the carriers of the best of the genetic pool. Kill these and the premium individuals make way for the inferior, who just happen to be the most likely who are unable to compete with the better and stronger hunters, and so turn in desperation to attack humans. The outcome, more attacks against people.
It gets worse. A typical politician will decide to make trophy shooting legal at the same time, thinking, lets kill two birds with one stone. So then you have a determined strategy to kill all the healthiest crocs. Pure stupidity.
The author said – “But the idiotic policy of the state Labor corporation is to catch and relocate crocs giving somebody else the problem.”
Strangely, that seems to be a universal mindset among the “official” wildlife community (for lack of a better description).
Example – in Victoria, if you have problems with possums breaking into and colonising and destroying your roof, or otherwise tearing up your suburban domicile, you are LEGALLY required to PAY A SPECIALIST to come in, assess the situation, humanely organise to trap the offending critter or critters without offending or otherwise upsetting them, and then take them away for release.
But they LEGALLY have to be released LESS THAN 50 metres from where they were captured. That’s maybe two houses down the street.
Strikes me as more of a business model than a wildlife management policy.
I watched some news last night and was shown a log bobbing in the water with a large crowd standing on the foreshore looking on.
If a boomerang that does return is called a stick then a log that bobs in the water is called a crocodile. Welcome to msm-inspired Idiocracy.
That is not to say there is not a croc near Brisbane. It’d be easy enough to catch one around Cairns and give it a much deserved holiday elsewhere.
FNQ is no place for white fellas! Too dangerous with all those stingers, crocs and local feral kids.
Now whereas, “The Place To Be”, Victoria,…ahem..hold on, er um….
– lol
A FNQ er by trade, born and bred there, also flew coastal surveillance for years and have seen large sharks chasing bait fish so close to the beach that the upper half of the shark was out of the water, twenty and more foot long crocs more than thirty miles offshore swimming along without a care in the World. Bottom line since you can’t fire a warning shot at them between the eyes anymore, the water belongs to them, you get sick on top of it and eaten underneath it so stay dry or attend the Tobruk Pool in Sheridan Street.