So cute ... for now! Clutch of baby crocs hatches at Crocodylus Park

Three baby crocodiles have poked their heads out of their shells in Darwin and had a glimpse of the world for the first time.

Three baby crocodiles have poked their heads out of their shells in Darwin and had a glimpse of the world for the first time.

The infant crocs hatched from their shells after being kept for 12 weeks at a consistent 32C at Crocodylus Park in Berrimah.

The three newborns were part of a small clutch of 35 baby salties hatching throughout the day at the park, which is home to thousands of crocodiles and other wildlife.

Crocodylus Park welcomed a new clutch of croc hatchlings on Tuesday. Picture: Glenn Campbell

Payton Prosser, tour guide and crocodile keeper for the past five years, said the park was looking forward to the hatching, which can be predicted to the exact day.

Mr Prosser said that while the crocodiles look very cute and harmless at about 15-20cm in length, if they’re fed well, they will not stay this way for long.

“If they’re a female crocodile, she will only get to about three metres, but male crocodiles never really stop growing,” he said.

“They can potentially get to five or six metres.”

Crocodylus Park welcomed a new clutch of croc hatchlings on Tuesday. Picture: Glenn Campbell

Mr Prosser said the nest will be one of about 50 that will hatch throughout the year.

He said naming any of the new crocodile babies was out of the question.

“We get about 50 nests a year, and between 40 and 60 in a nest, so you’d run out of names,” he laughed.

Elliot the deer’s big ... and this front page proves it

ELLIOT the Berry Springs Tavern deer enjoyed being in the limelight after his front page news story ... but he’s still on the hunt for love.

Berry Springs Tavern owner Ian Sloan said the pub had not received any calls.

Elliot the deer and his front page. Picture: Supplied

“I think some of the female deer are now a bit intimidated by him now he’s a superstar, but really he’s a regular deer looking for love,” Mr Sloan said. “If we don’t find him love, we should set up a dating profile for him on Tinder.”

Mr Sloan said since Elliot’s Monday headline story, a ­noticeable number of people had been visiting the Berry Springs Tavern carpark to see the now famous Top End deer.

“He was a bit cocky yesterday (Monday) showing off his news story,” he said.

Yellow crazy ants could be disaster for the NT

THE NT is attempting to control or eradicate yellow crazy ants, but should it fail and the ants spread, they will likely have wider impacts, expert scientists say.

Yellow crazy ants are a disaster for some of Australia’s skink species, with research revealing the invasive insects are killing the reptiles.

James Cook University associ­ate professor Lori Lach says invasive ants outcompeting or preying on native ants and other insects often leads to population declines or local extinctions.

Yellow crazy ants are best known for the killing of millions of red land crabs and triggering a cascade of ecological impacts on Christmas Island.

Numerous jurisdictions in the Northern Territory, Queensland and NSW are attempting to control or eradicate the ants.

The NT is attempting to control or eradicate yellow crazy ants, but should it fail and the ants spread, they will likely have wider impacts, reptile diversity and conservation expert Dr Conrad Hoskin says.

A dog’s tail with a happy ending

NATHANIEL Jackson searched high and low around his Parap neighbourhood after he arrived home to find his beloved border collie puppy, Pippen, which he had had for only 10 days, had vanished from his backyard on Saturday, January 8.

The following day, Mr Jackson put a post in the NT Lost and Found: Dogs and Cats Facebook group and then immediately headed to Officeworks to print off “missing” posters.

Border collie puppy Pippen is back safe in her loving owner Nathaniel Jackson’s arms. Picture: Julianne Osborne

Within that short time frame, his post “started to blow up” like “wildfire” when people from around the Top End community shared and passed it on, reaching more than 300 shares. After searching for four days, finally there was hope for Mr Jackson.

He received word from Catherine Coles, who said she saw Pippen being snatched on the Saturday night.

“She was able to get a description of them and an exact time and location that they passed by police CCTV cameras,” Mr Jackson said.

The search continued on when finally the phone rang with the news everyone had been hoping for.

“I got a call from one of the members of Task Force Trident saying that they had found Pippen with the help of the community and had her with them at the police station,” he said. Mr Jackson was greeted at the station by a boisterous puppy, licking his face as a sloppy symbol of love … and all was right with the world again.