Aussie croc hunters have caught a 4.71 metre long saltwater crocodile after chasing it through the outback for eight years, officials revealed today.
Rangers in the Northern Territories (NT) finally captured Katherine River’s biggest croc — weighing in at a whopping 600 kilograms.
The hunt began after rumours of a “large dark tail” spotted near a local boat ramp, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
NT Parks and Wildlife rangers Chris Heydon and John Burke said it was very unusual to capture a croc this big in the Katherine River system.
“We average a 4.2 metre (13.7ft) croc most years, but never this big,” Mr Burke said.
Despite its colossal weight, rangers said the male reptile, who could possibly be over 60 years old, was not that difficult to trap.
Mr. Heydon said: “When they are this big we just sedate them, so there is no chance of us getting chomped.”
The reptile will be taken to a crocodile farm in the Katherine region, Northern Territories Parks and Wildlife confirmed.
In the Northern Territories inland waters, almost 5 metre saltwater crocodile is considered to be rare.
“Although this is the biggest we’ve caught in the Katherine River, there are bigger ones out there that come up from the Daly River,” ranger Burke said.
The NT Parks and Wildlife are reminding the community to “be crocwise”.
On their website they make it clear that “croc danger is real”.
“Do not become complacent or risk your life.”The 5.8-metre crocodile known as Cassius that was trapped in 1984 still ranks as the largest of the reptiles ever captured in Australia.
Rangers in the Northern Territories (NT) finally captured Katherine River’s biggest croc — weighing in at a whopping 600 kilograms.
The hunt began after rumours of a “large dark tail” spotted near a local boat ramp, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
NT Parks and Wildlife rangers Chris Heydon and John Burke said it was very unusual to capture a croc this big in the Katherine River system.
“We average a 4.2 metre (13.7ft) croc most years, but never this big,” Mr Burke said.
Despite its colossal weight, rangers said the male reptile, who could possibly be over 60 years old, was not that difficult to trap.
Mr. Heydon said: “When they are this big we just sedate them, so there is no chance of us getting chomped.”
The reptile will be taken to a crocodile farm in the Katherine region, Northern Territories Parks and Wildlife confirmed.
In the Northern Territories inland waters, almost 5 metre saltwater crocodile is considered to be rare.
“Although this is the biggest we’ve caught in the Katherine River, there are bigger ones out there that come up from the Daly River,” ranger Burke said.
The NT Parks and Wildlife are reminding the community to “be crocwise”.
On their website they make it clear that “croc danger is real”.
“Do not become complacent or risk your life.”The 5.8-metre crocodile known as Cassius that was trapped in 1984 still ranks as the largest of the reptiles ever captured in Australia.
Music: "River of Io" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Source: Katherine Times, The Sun, Nine, Sydney Morning Herald, NT Wild Life
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