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Katie Woolf spoke with NT Parks and Wildlife Croc Management Team Ian Hunt · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: You're listening to Mixed one O four point nine.
• 0:02
  Speaker 2: Now.
• 0:03
  Speaker 3: Park rangers are on the hunt for a four point
• 0:05
  Speaker 3: five meter crocodile which was spotted near a Darwin waterfront wharf.
• 0:10
  Speaker 3: I caught up with Ian Hunt from the croc Management
• 0:13
  Speaker 3: team a little bit earlier this morning.
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: Good morning, Ian.
• 0:18
  Speaker 2: Good morning Katie Mate.
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: Tell us a little bit about this crocodile sighting.
• 0:23
  Speaker 2: So yesterday the Crocodile Management Team received a call from
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: a member of the public alerting us to a signing
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  Speaker 2: of a crocodile near the Stokes Hill Wharf. We went
• 0:32
  Speaker 2: down and attended and unfortunately, by the time we were
• 0:35
  Speaker 2: on the scene, the crocodile was nowhere to be seen
• 0:37
  Speaker 2: at that time. And then later on that day another
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: signing occurred in the same area and again we were
• 0:43
  Speaker 2: able to attend. The crocodile was no longer at the
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: site thing at that point, but we did get a
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  Speaker 2: photograph from a member of the public confirming that they
• 0:51
  Speaker 2: had him in. The crocodile in that area.
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: Ian, where exactly are we talking?
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  Speaker 2: So it was just in behind Stokeshill Wharf, where the
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  Speaker 2: jet skis lead from and where some of the boat
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  Speaker 2: cruisers lead from so just behind Stokeshille.
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  Speaker 3: Wharf, Right, So it is an area which is frequented
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  Speaker 3: fairly often by territorians and visitors.
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  Speaker 2: That's right. Yeah, it's a very popular area.
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  Speaker 3: I guess, you know, people aren't really swimming in there.
• 1:19
  Speaker 3: They are though on those jet skis. Is it a
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  Speaker 3: dangerous situation that we've got on our hands that.
• 1:25
  Speaker 2: We can't say that it's a dangerous situation. All we
• 1:28
  Speaker 2: can say is the fact that harbor is well known
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: having crocodiles in it. Were removed over three hundred crocodiles
• 1:35
  Speaker 2: from the harbor every year, So we're just reminding everybody
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: to be crop wise at this time. We are aware
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  Speaker 2: of the crocodile in that area at the moment, and
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  Speaker 2: we'll do our best to try and remove it as
• 1:45
  Speaker 2: quickly as we can.
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  Speaker 3: All right. So it's certainly not unusual to have it
• 1:48
  Speaker 3: in this spot, but I guess given the number of
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  Speaker 3: people that saw it yesterday, it's probably raised the eyebrows
• 1:54
  Speaker 3: of lots of people who head out on the water
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  Speaker 3: around that area.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, that's right. I think everybody has been up here
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  Speaker 2: for a little while. We know that crocodiles can be
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  Speaker 2: anywhere and seeing them around the harbor is not unusual.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, hey, im, what's the plan now in terms of
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  Speaker 3: trying to capture us.
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  Speaker 2: So we get any more sightings around the stokes of
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  Speaker 2: War today, we'll head out this evening and try and
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  Speaker 2: remove this animal tonight. If not, then there's a good
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  Speaker 2: chance it might have moved around further into one of
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  Speaker 2: the creeks where we have our traps, and hopefully we'll
• 2:21
  Speaker 2: be able to pick it up there.
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  Speaker 3: Okay, So what is the likelihood of it still being
• 2:24
  Speaker 3: in that area fairly high? Or is the reality that
• 2:27
  Speaker 3: they do move along pretty quickly.
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: Both can happen, like crops can remain in an area
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  Speaker 2: for a long period of time if they want to.
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  Speaker 2: But we do find that crops move on with the
• 2:37
  Speaker 2: tidal movement. Crocs move around the harbor very freely. So
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  Speaker 2: we do find that crops do move on within the
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  Speaker 2: day or so, and there's a good chance you'll be
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  Speaker 2: picked up somewhere in one of the creeks where our
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  Speaker 2: traps are located.
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  Speaker 3: And so the likelihood of that crocodile being captured fairly
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  Speaker 3: high by the sounds of it, hopefully, yes.
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  Speaker 2: So we try and remove as many crocodiles as we can.
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  Speaker 2: We have a zero tolerance in the harbor point that animal.
• 3:00
  Speaker 3: Will we remove now four point five meters? Is that
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  Speaker 3: a fairly large one for that area?
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  Speaker 2: It is? We haven't confirmed that size. That was what
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  Speaker 2: was reported to us by a member of the public,
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  Speaker 2: but as we haven't been able to see it with
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  Speaker 2: our own eyes, we haven't confirmed that it was that large.
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  Speaker 2: From the photograph we were provided with it was hard
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  Speaker 2: to tell. But it is still treating it as a
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  Speaker 2: potentially large crocodile in that area.
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  Speaker 3: What's your advice for people that are sort of in
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  Speaker 3: that area if they're around there today. I guess it's
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  Speaker 3: the same as what it always is, and that is
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  Speaker 3: to be croc wise one percent.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, that's always our kline. Information we want to get
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  Speaker 2: out the public is, you know, treat every waterways if
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  Speaker 2: it does have a large crocodile in it, because they
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  Speaker 2: can be anywhere, So remain vigilant, remain crop wise, and
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  Speaker 2: if anybody does see it, please give us a call
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  Speaker 2: on the Crop Management number and let us know. We
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  Speaker 2: can get down there and at ten ian.
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  Speaker 3: How have things been in our waterways over the last
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  Speaker 3: few weeks? I know that we've seen a lot of crocs,
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  Speaker 3: you know, in some of those waterways, those smaller waterways.
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  Speaker 1: In recent months. How have things been going, Yeah, it's.
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  Speaker 2: Been a busy year for us. We've removed over one
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  Speaker 2: hundred and thirty crocodiles from the waterways this year so far.
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  Speaker 2: We removed one from one Guy Falls Plunge pool last week,
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  Speaker 2: which is still close to the public, which just kind
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  Speaker 2: of tells people, you know, they can be anywhere. We
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  Speaker 2: also removed one from a sewage ponds and helps you
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  Speaker 2: do as well last week. So it's busy time for
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  Speaker 2: us removing crocodiles and making sure the public are safe.
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  Speaker 3: Goodness may the sewage ponds, Is that something that's happened
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  Speaker 3: in the past.
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  Speaker 2: It is, Yeah, the sewage ones are still a waterway,
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  Speaker 2: and the crocs can be in any waterway. So that's
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  Speaker 2: what we're trying to come home to people to make
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  Speaker 2: sure they realize that, you know, they're not only just
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  Speaker 2: in the creeks and rivers. They can be in pretty
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  Speaker 2: much any waterway. So we're out there trying to be
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  Speaker 2: as active as we can try and cut down the
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  Speaker 2: risk to members of the public.
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  Speaker 3: One hundred and thirty crocodiles this year. How does that
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  Speaker 3: compare to previous years.
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  Speaker 2: We're a little bit up on last year, which was
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  Speaker 2: quiet a year for us. But yeah, well we're tracking
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  Speaker 2: to probably be somewhere between three three hundred and fifty
• 5:01
  Speaker 2: crocodiles for this year, which is pretty average for us.
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: Yeah, goodness me mate.
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  Speaker 3: You guys have got that one of the most exciting
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  Speaker 3: jobs going. I reckon it'd be pretty scary at different times,
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  Speaker 3: but you get used to it, no doubt.
• 5:15
  Speaker 2: Yeah, that's right, and we all enjoy it. And you
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  Speaker 2: say it brings on some individual challenges for it, that's
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  Speaker 2: for sure.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, no doubt about it. Well, it's been a real
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  Speaker 3: pleasure talking to you this morning.
• 5:23
  Speaker 1: Ian.
• 5:23
  Speaker 3: We really appreciate your time. Thanks so much for chatting
• 5:26
  Speaker 3: with us.
• 5:27
  Speaker 2: Katie, thank you having you too.
• 5:29
  Speaker 3: That is nt Parks and Wildlife croc management team one
• 5:33
  Speaker 3: of their team members there, Ian Hunt And just to
• 5:37
  Speaker 3: reiterate that park rangers are on the hunt for this
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  Speaker 3: crocodile is Some people have reported it being about four
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  Speaker 3: point five meters. Obviously, the kroc management team haven't been
• 5:47
  Speaker 3: able to cite it yet to see exactly how big
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  Speaker 3: it is. But as you've just heard there. We need
• 5:52
  Speaker 3: to be crock wise no matter where we are. Eight
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  Speaker 3: nine four one four nine is the number if you'd
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  Speaker 3: like to call through.