Queensland croc trapped and shot after beachside dog attack

The death of a 4.4m ‘icon’ croc has sparked outrage among animal advocates, who have slammed the ‘disgraceful situation’. Read how the NT is leading the way in crocodile management.

A 4.4m croc was trapped and killed by Queensland Department of Environment and Science rangers. The act has been slammed and called a 'disgraceful situation'.

The recent execution of a 4.4m croc because it was an “inconvenience to the human population” has sparked major controversy across the country.

Former NT crocodile tour guide Damian ‘Wildman’ Duffy said the beautiful beast ate an unsupervised dog in a well-known croc habitat, and it was later trapped and killed by Queensland wildlife rangers.

Mr Duffy said wildlife education might have prevented the “disgraceful situation” and was key to preserving the giant reptiles in a state where the croc population is particularly vulnerable.

He said the apex predators were critical to the environment and should be protected.

A 4.4m croc was trapped and killed by Queensland Department of Environment and Science rangers. The act has been slammed and called a 'disgraceful situation'.

“The Crocwise program in the Northern Territory is pretty bloody fantastic,” Mr Duffy said.

“You get rangers going around to schools, and even Crocwise talks, and it’s everywhere that you see that.

“They’re a little bit behind in Queensland … compared to the Northern Territory in their attitude towards crocodiles.

“They’ve got this delusional sense of self-entitlement that the waterways are theirs, and they should just be able to shoot crocodiles so they can go for a swim.”

Damian ‘Wildman’ Duffy has previously worked at the Adelaide River Jumping Crocodile Cruise. Picture: Craig Warhurst

Mr Duffy – whose passion for Australian fauna led him to a career in wildlife parks and even a stint at the Adelaide River Jumping Crocodile Cruise – said it was important to understand it is possible to “coexist” with crocs.

In an Instagram post seen by more than 127,000 followers, Mr Duffy said the Queensland Department of Environment and Science was a “national and international embarrassment”.

The Community Representation of Crocodiles - known as CROC - also condemned the rangers’ actions.

“Killing an old adult male crocodile for doing what his species has done for millions of years is not the answer,” the group wrote in a Facebook post.

“We need to respect our apex predators, not go out trapping and shooting them.”

Wildlife photographer Damian ‘Wildman’ Duffy spent a few years in the Top End taking photos and videos of crocs. He said the animals have fascinated him since he was a child. Picture: Damian Duffy

Mr Duffy said a best practice approach would not see the croc trapped at all, but suggested it could have at least been relocated.

“Crocodiles are pretty resilient animals – they do stress out pretty easily – but there is no reason that that crocodile couldn’t have been transported to a wildlife facility,” he said.

“They made the call to shoot it in the trap because apparently, according to the (Department of Environment and Science), they said that to transport the crocodile over long distances, it would probably die anyway.”

Mr Duffy said it was a “bullshit excuse they’ve used to justify the killing of that animal”.

Damian Duffy said in an Instagram post the Queensland Department of Environment and Science’s response to the croc made it a ‘national and international embarrassment’. Picture: Damian Duffy

A Queensland Department of Environment and Science spokesman said rangers received reports of the croc taking a dog at Napranum Beach near Weipa on April 28 and 30.

He said the Napranum Aboriginal Shire Council on May 8 contacted DES and said the croc was a safety concern.

“Wildlife officers conducted a site assessment and attempted to haze the animal (using non-lethal pellets) to drive it away from the beach area,” the spokesman said.

“However, during the assessment wildlife officers observed concerning, bold behaviour by the animal and made the assessment that it represented an unacceptable risk to the safety of the community.

“After consultation with the local community and Traditional Owners the decision was made that the animal should be humanely euthanised.”

The spokesman said “humane euthanasia” was used as a last resort due to the “very low survival rate” associated with transport issues thanks to the distance from the site to the nearest facility.

“Historically, captured crocodiles have been observed to experience slow and painful deaths, sometimes taking months, after being transported long distances by road,” he said.

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