Kakadu Crocodile Attack

Submitted: Saturday, Jun 07, 2014 at 23:51
ThreadID: 108165 Views:7157 Replies:20 FollowUps:32
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52 year old man pulled from his boat. Police say the man was attacked when he was in a boat on a billabong at Cooinda late on Saturday afternoon.

Is it time to investigate crocodile management.?

Call for review of crocodile management

An Aboriginal corporation representing traditional owners in Kakadu National Park is calling for a review of crocodile management around their communities.

The Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation says the Mirarr people and other traditional owners have managed the land for tens of thousands of years, compared to the Commonwealth's 30 years.

It says the Federal Government must listen to the advice of local people and review crocodile populations and safety concerns.

Corporation spokesman Justin O'Brien says it is only in recent decades that crocodile attacks have become an issue.

He says over-management of the park has led to more crocodile-related incidents.

"Our senior traditional owner Yvonne Margarula has told me she would swim just here at Mula Island billabong when she was a girl in the 1970s and '80s," he said.

"The [crocodile] numbers were low and, importantly ... crocodiles had a fear of humankind.

"Over the past 40-plus years since the protection laws have been in place, all that has changed."

Culling would create more problems, expert says

But a Darwin crocodile expert says culling is not the best way to stop crocodile attacks in the Northern Territory.

Crocodylus Park chief scientist Charlie Manolis says it would create more problems than it would solve.

"I always worry a little bit about just going in and ... trying to cull and reduce numbers," he said.

"What that does with a lot of salties is they will just go to ground and you won't see them at all.

"It may give people a false sense of security."

Mr Manolis says data collected over 30 years shows crocodile populations in some rivers are increasing slowly.

"But the biggest thing is that the average size of crocodiles is getting bigger and bigger and bigger," he said.

"The average saltie might be 3.5 metres, four metres long now, whereas 20 years ago they might have only been one and 1.5 metres long.

"They might not be increasing so much in numbers but their average size is increasing."

He says more education about crocodile safety is needed for Indigenous communities in remote areas.

He says recent research shows a high proportion of crocodile attacks in the Territory have involved Indigenous people.
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