Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Ian Hunt from the NT's crocodile management team says a nearly 3 metre croc was caught in the surf just near beach goers

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Ian Hunt from the NT's crocodile management team says a nearly 3 metre croc was caught in the surf just near beach goers · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Let's find out what the goal is with this crocodile
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: right now, because joining me on the line is wildlife
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: ranger Ian Hunt. Good morning to you, Ian.
• 0:09
  Speaker 2: Good morning, Katie, and good morning to your listening Ian.
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: I understand that there has been quite a large crocodile
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: in the Cullen Bay area. Is that correct?
• 0:18
  Speaker 2: Yeah, that's correct. We received a call yesterday lunchtimes for
• 0:22
  Speaker 2: a format that there'd been a crocodile sided very close
• 0:25
  Speaker 2: to the beach at the Culum Bay area there. We
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: responded and saw it was actually a crocodile in that area.
• 0:31
  Speaker 2: We re cited swimming out to sea, but we did
• 0:35
  Speaker 2: actually return yesterday evening and remove that animal because you'd
• 0:38
  Speaker 2: come back in very close to the shore.
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: Oh goodness, may So when did you when did you
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: manage to remove him?
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: Yesterday evening about seven thirty that animal was removed from
• 0:48
  Speaker 2: the area.
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  Speaker 1: And how big was he?
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  Speaker 2: I think his full measurement was two point ninety five,
• 0:54
  Speaker 2: so just under three meters.
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: Okay, And so what he was just swimming around there
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: at Culhuenbar.
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: Yeah, he was sitting just offshore. I think the smell
• 1:04
  Speaker 2: of the fish and chips there and the fact that
• 1:06
  Speaker 2: people are walking their dogs along the foreshore. It's a
• 1:08
  Speaker 2: bit too much for him to resist.
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  Speaker 1: Bloody frightening that he's like there and that is such
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: a busy area.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, it's very busy. When we were down there this evening,
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  Speaker 2: there would have been a few hundred people all along
• 1:20
  Speaker 2: the beach there with potentially a very large crocodile very
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: close to them.
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  Speaker 1: Oh goodness, meet, I'm looking at some of the photos
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  Speaker 1: that have been published on the NT news and he
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: like he is literally right there on the you know,
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: like on the beach.
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: Yeah, that's correct. Yeah, he was actually very close to
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  Speaker 2: attacking somebody's dog yesterday afternoon. I believe so very lucky
• 1:42
  Speaker 2: that we were able to remove him before an incident occurred.
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: Oh holy moly, I reckon. You guys do a phenomenal
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  Speaker 1: job with the you know, with removing those crocodiles, particularly
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: when they are in those areas that are highly populated.
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: How has it been going over recent months in.
• 1:57
  Speaker 2: Yeah, Yeah, we we're still very busy. We're get lots
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: of phone calls and lots of reports of crocodiles around.
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  Speaker 2: So even with the cool little temperatures, crops still on
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  Speaker 2: the move and even quite large crocodiles are still being found.
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  Speaker 2: We're doing our best to respond as quickly as we
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  Speaker 2: can and remove as many as we can out of
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  Speaker 2: the management area to keep everybody safe as possible.
• 2:15
  Speaker 1: Does that colder weather or I know it's not cold
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: in many people some standards, but does that cooler weather
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  Speaker 1: tend to slim down a bit? Usually we do.
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: See lesser numbers being caught around at this time of year.
• 2:28
  Speaker 2: Either that's due to the fact that they're not eating
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: as much so they're not as likely to turn up
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: in our traps, or maybe just due to the fact
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: that there's not as much water coming out of the
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: creeks and rivers. Obviously with the dry season, there's not
• 2:38
  Speaker 2: as much rain around, so those crops aren't moving around
• 2:41
  Speaker 2: the rivers and creeks into the ocean as much necessarily.
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: But we still remove quite a number of crocodiles through
• 2:46
  Speaker 2: the dry season, but it definitely increases during the build
• 2:50
  Speaker 2: up and wet And then with this.
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: One that was at Cullum Bay, have you had to
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: remove many of them from that area before?
• 2:59
  Speaker 2: Yeah, as we say, like that area along Cullumbay and
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: even Fanny Bay and around in Casarina. That's a bit
• 3:05
  Speaker 2: of a highway for crocodiles to move around and get
• 3:07
  Speaker 2: into the harbor, so we quite often have sidings along
• 3:10
  Speaker 2: those areas. Normally, CrOx are just moving along into other areas,
• 3:15
  Speaker 2: so they might only be cited for ten or fifteen
• 3:16
  Speaker 2: minutes while they're cruising along. But this particular animal decided
• 3:20
  Speaker 2: that he was going to stay around for at least
• 3:21
  Speaker 2: a few hours. He was for most of yesterday until
• 3:24
  Speaker 2: we removed him, so he might have stayed for a
• 3:26
  Speaker 2: little while long there. We haven't got there well.
• 3:28
  Speaker 1: And the thing that I'm thinking to myself as you
• 3:31
  Speaker 1: and I are discussing this, and I'm looking at this
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  Speaker 1: photo that has been posted on the nt news website.
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: You know, quite often, like when you take the kids
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  Speaker 1: there four fish and chips at Culum Bay, it's not
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  Speaker 1: unusual to see kids just sort of dipping their feet
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  Speaker 1: into that area. So it's a bit of a warning
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  Speaker 1: for everybody, isn't it.
• 3:49
  Speaker 2: Absolutely When we responded your afternoon, there was two people
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  Speaker 2: swimming up to chest beet water only maybe fifty sixty
• 3:56
  Speaker 2: meters away from where the crocodile was. They had no
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: idea that the animal was there. They did obviously immediately
• 4:01
  Speaker 2: get out of the water when they were told, but yeah,
• 4:04
  Speaker 2: a wake up call for people, just to remind them that, yeah,
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  Speaker 2: the territory is crocodile territory and they can be in
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  Speaker 2: all of our waterways.
• 4:10
  Speaker 1: Oh my goodness. And what was every action when you
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: then ended up pulling the crocodile out and they'd been
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: in the water.
• 4:17
  Speaker 2: Yeah, they were very surprised. I don't think they had
• 4:19
  Speaker 2: any idea that there was potentially crocodiles in the area.
• 4:21
  Speaker 2: And actually when you point one out to them, it
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  Speaker 2: does come at a bit of a shock.
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: I think, oh, mate, that is scary stuff. I would
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: be well, I won't say what I would usually say
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: if I was off the radio, but I'd be quite frightened,
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  Speaker 1: I reckon to say the least.
• 4:35
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I think you came as a shock, mate.
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: I really appreciate your time this morning. I know that
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  Speaker 1: you guys are very busy, so we appreciate you having
• 4:42
  Speaker 1: your talk with us and letting us know that that
• 4:44
  Speaker 1: crocodile has been captured. And I think that a lot
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: of people are going to be pleased to hear that.
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  Speaker 1: But as you've said, a big reminder that there are
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: still plenty of crocodiles in our waterways.
• 4:54
  Speaker 2: That's it. Thank you Katie and thanks for the time
• 4:56
  Speaker 2: talking to us. We really appreciate it.
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: No worries at all. Thanks Am. We'll talk to you
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: again so