First photo of saltwater crocodile in Mary River near Beaver Rock outside Maryborough in south-east Queensland
NEW photos released today show for the first time the large crocodile living in the Mary River downstream from Maryborough. See our croc map
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UPDATED: NEW photos released today show for the first time the large crocodile living in the Mary River downstream from Maryborough - hundreds of kilometres south of their usual range.
Rangers are preparing to trap the 3.5-metre saltwater croc, which was spotted by a commercial fisherman in the Mary River, about 250km north of Brisbane.
Scroll down for our Google Croc map showing reported sightings in southern Queensland and linking to historical media reports.
The sizable reptile was sighted yesterday on a mud bank about 2km from Beaver Rock boat ramp, opposite Brothers Island.
The rangers have arranged for a 4m-long cage trap to be set for the hefty animal this morning and are using pigs' carcasses in an attempt to trap the croc in the next few days.
The trap has been set at Rocky Point near where the animal's slides were last seen.
The site is about 3km from a Beaver Rock fishing spot popular with young families whose children fish off the river bank.
Pictures provided by the Department of the Environment show the animal sunning itself on a mud bank.
Local farmer Andy Fowler of Beaver Rock, 8km from the Mary River mouth and across Sandy Strait from Fraser Island, said he believed the crocodile was the same animal he had seen about three years ago on a mud bank in the area.
"I was surprised to see it, for sure", he said.
He said that sighting had not been officially reported.
Rangers have arranged for a trap to be set for the hefty animal this morning.
Environment Minister Andrew Powell claims this is the first confirmed sighting of a crocodile this far south.
But couriermail.com.au readers have disputed this claim, saying a crocodile was spotted in the Logan River in the early 1900's.
Our picture archives include this image taken in June, 1905 of that crocodile on the banks of the Logan River at Logan Village (Pic courtesy Gold Coast City Library).
State government policy dictates that any crocodile seen south of the Boyne River in central Queensland is to be relocated to a crocodile farm or zoo.
Mr Powell said the area where the reptile was seen is well upstream from swimming spots, but is used by fishers.
He urged people to stay away from the area.
Can you confirm the first sighting of a crocodile in the southern half of Queensland? Let us know in the comments section
A 2010 environment department survey examined 48 rivers and found no evidence of crocs between the Fitzroy River to the north and Maryborough, which lies west of Fraser Island.
Newspaper archives and internet news reports list many sightings of crocodiles outside their usual range, including the one shot in the Logan River and another shot around Tiaro, near Maryborough, in the 1960s. Another was reportedly shot in the river in 1947. A decomposing 4.5m crocodile was reportedly found on Woody Island near Hervey Bay in 1951.
There have been anecdotal reports of crocodiles in the Mary River for decades, with stories of fishermen at Saltwater Creek (which flows into the river) being careful to avoid them.
South of Maryborough, warning signs were erected at Inskip Point near the southern end of Fraser Island a few years ago after a yachtsman reported a large saltwater crocodile swimming around his vessel when he was moored in an island inlet.
There have also been reports of crocodiles on the Sunshine Coast, in the Burrum River north of Maryborough, and in a creek near Bundaberg.
Our Google Croc map below includes links to many reports of sightings, with some carrying copies of newspaper reports.
View Google Map: Crocodile sightings in SE Queensland in a larger map
