Yellow Water Billabong cruise guests treated to crocodile eating a fellow reptile

Tasmanian tourists on a Top End billabong cruise were astounded at the sight of a crocodile treating itself to a snappy snack. SEE THE FOOTAGE >>

It’s a croc-eat-croc world and we’re just lucky to be living in it.

There’s no doubt guests aboard a cruise on the Yellow Water Billabong were thinking this when they saw a saltwater crocodile munching on a fellow beast during a tour last week.

Tasmanian Linda Goram and her party of 10 were the only ones aboard a Yellow Water cruise last week. Their guide had noted a “kerfuffle” earlier and took the group to a spot along the billabong where they found a huge male croc with a fellow beast in its mouth.

“He lifted it up and threw it around in the air and he was shaking it,” Mrs Goram said.

“He went down under the water. Then other crocs came around the boat wanting to have a look at what was going on. We didn’t know where to look.”

Mrs Goram said the group sat in shocked silence for a few minutes, processing the sight. Her photos show the croc munching on one of the leftovers of its lunch.

“The croc was enormous and it’s got that power and strength. It was quite an amazing thing to watch,” she said.

This croc was captured eating another during a cruise along the Yellow Water Cruise. Picture: Linda Goram

A close-up of the guts. Picture: Linda Goram

“He was shaking it and trying to break it up.

“(Our group) were pretty quiet to start with. For us it was quite unexpected to see that happen.

“There were a few expletives … for our Tassie contingent it was pretty special. Afterwards we were sitting down and looking at our phones and cameras to see what was going on.”

And while it stunned onlookers, it’s not an unusual sight according to Kakadu Tourism spokesman Peter Hook.

Mr Hook told the NT News it was peak “croc-kill-croc” season for the region.

“This is when it happens most because as the dry reaches its peak, the waters recede and with some 10,000 crocodiles in Kakadu, the fights over territory become intense,” he said.

“The mating season for crocodiles is also about to start from next month, so the males are beginning to position themselves and their territories and as juvenile males strike out to find their own territory, there is inevitable conflict.”

One of the billabong’s most notable crocs, a 5m saltie named Maxi, made national headlines in 2015 after being captured throwing around the corpse of a smaller 2m crocodile.

Maxi the croc eating another saltie. Picture: Supplied

Mr Hook said cruises allowed people to see the beauty of these crocs in their natural habitat.

“This is why this is the best time to take a cruise on Yellow Water Billabong. There is unparalleled wildlife activity,” he said.

“In three weeks’ time Kakadu bird week starts because it is peak time for migration of birds to the region for feeding. Millions of magpie geese arrive and grow fat on the andem (blue lily), which becomes exposed because the waters have receded.

“Kakadu becomes a huge wildlife buffet from now until the rains start falling around mid-November.”

In recent years, Territory crocs have been captured chowing down in spectacular images and video.

In July a 4.5m saltie was filmed off the coast of Crab Claw Island with a goat in its jaw.

“We’re hoping he wasn’t someone’s pet, don’t know the chances of him returning,” videographer Adam Kenna told the NT News.

In April, a water buffalo on the verge of becoming lunch went viral after video sent to the NT News showed it charging at circling crocs.

Originally published as Yellow Water Billabong cruise guests treated to crocodile eating a fellow reptile