Environment and Resource Management

FAQs

How do I remain safe in 'Croc country'?

The 'Croc wise' community awareness program has a number of key safety messages, including:

Other important safety messages can be found on this website at: Be crocwise

If someone wants to go swimming where there might be a crocodile, surely that's the individual's responsibility?

Unfortunately there was an incident where an individual went swimming in an area inhabited by crocodiles and advised others that the area was safe. The result was that one of the group was attacked and killed by a crocodile. Seeing someone swimming could convince others to do the same and expose them to a potentially dangerous situation. Therefore, by prohibiting high risk activities in protected areas such as swimming and wading, the department is taking appropriate and responsible actions to protect the public.

What are the threats faced by estuarine crocodiles?

The estuarine crocodile was almost shot out of existence during the latter half of the twentieth century. When it was protected by the Queensland Government in 1974, this threat was eliminated but the impact was so great that even now, more than three decades later, estuarine crocodile populations are still recovering and the species is listed as vulnerable under the Nature Conservation Act 1992.

This vulnerability now means that other threats include:

Shouldn't crocodiles just be culled out of those areas where people live (and fish)?

Crocodiles, by nature, are shy and blend into their surroundings very well. They are also able to move over considerable distances (both over land and in the water). This means that culling or removal will never be a guarantee that any area within the likely range of the estuarine crocodile is 'crocodile-free'. To remove one crocodile will simply create more space for the other crocodiles that already live there or allow new crocodiles to disperse into the vacated area.

It will always be more sensible, and safer, to assume that crocodile habitat is occupied and to take the basic precautions of not swimming or wading, and adopting safe fishing and safe boating practices.

Supporting facts: In a 2003 study, satellite tracking of estuarine crocodiles showed that they are capable of moving considerable distances within a river system and also use the ocean to move along the coastline to access different river systems. One crocodile that was relocated 52km from its original capture site only took five days to return to that site.

If people want to see a crocodile in 'Croc country' surely they can go to a wildlife park. Why do they need to see them in the wild?

Crocodiles have been filling the role of top predator in a range of coastal ecosystems in northern Queensland for hundreds of thousands, if not millions of years. (Three fossils of the oldest known form of modern crocodile were discovered near Isisford in central Queensland. These fossils are estimated to be 95-98 million years old.)

To remove a top predator like a crocodile from an ecosystem disrupts complex food webs and changes the abundance of other animals that fill roles as secondary predators, prey species and, in turn, even scavengers and decomposers.

What makes a crocodile a 'problem crocodile'?

On 1 November 2007 The Minister for Sustainability, Climate Change and Innovation stated in Parliament that crocodiles greater than two metres in length that occur in defined urban areas (Crocodile Urban Management Areas) would now be regarded as problem crocodiles unless they were just moving through an area or the area was well-known crocodile habitat.

Maps of these Crocodile Urban Management Areas are available for Cairns (PDF, 1.9M)*, Townsville/Thuringowa (PDF, 1.5M)*, Mackay (PDF, 1.2M)*, Rockhampton (PDF, 1.4M)* and Gladstone (PDF, 1.0M)*.

In addition to this, when the new estuarine crocodile conservation plan comes into effect on 1 March 2008 the definition of a problem crocodile will be expanded to include an estuarine crocodile that the chief executive considers is, or is likely to become, a source of danger to humans or - in the case of a crocodile having passed over, through or under a crocodile prevention barrier on land other than in a protected area - stock, working dogs or aquaculture fisheries resources.

The chief executive may also consider an estuarine crocodile is, or is likely to become, a problem crocodile if it:

What areas are included in Crocodile Urban Management Areas?

These management areas cover centres of contiguous urban development within city centres excluding natural, unaltered waterways and foreshore areas. Within these areas, crocodiles over two metres that are found in artificial waterways or artificial habitat including golf courses, drainage canals and residential properties will be targeted for immediate removal.

It should be remembered that populated areas not in a Crocodile Urban Management Area, such as smaller regional towns, are still subject to the provisions of the crocodile conservation plan in regard to problem crocodiles (i.e. estuarine crocodiles that are declared to be problem crocodiles in these areas will be removed).

What is a crocodile prevention barrier?

This is a barrier that is reasonably likely to prevent a crocodile from passing over, through or under it to access the land on which stock, working dogs or aquaculture fisheries resources normally live. An example of a crocodile prevention barrier would be a one metre high chain link fence of sturdy construction that is secured to the ground (i.e. cannot be passed under).

What happens once a crocodile is declared to be a problem crocodile under the new plan?

A problem crocodile will be removed from the wild. Under the conservation plan this is carried out by a person acting under an appropriate authority (i.e. a crocodile management authority or a damage mitigation permit). Problem crocodiles caught under a crocodile management authority are then made available for purchase by approved wildlife parks or crocodile farms.

For more details on this process see Sections 3.1.2 Capture, handling and removal of problem crocodiles and 3.1.3 Disposal and allocation of problem crocodiles in the Management program for Crocodylus porosus in Queensland 2007-2017.

Why aren't problem crocodiles just relocated?

Recent research involving the satellite tracking of estuarine crocodiles has shown that they can return to the place from which they were removed, and will cover considerable distances to do this. Therefore relocating crocodiles is no longer seen as an effective way of managing problem crocodiles.

How many problem crocodiles are caught each year?

Since 2000 between 10 and 21 problem crocodiles have been caught each year (with the average being 16 a year). Over the last few years the number of problem crocodiles caught has been below this average (seven problem crocodiles were removed in 2006).

Are there restrictions in this conservation plan that stop me from fishing, boating or swimming?

Under the conservation plan, certain unsafe activities are prohibited in areas inhabited by estuarine crocodiles.

The intention of prohibiting certain behaviours is not to stop people fishing or boating but is designed to ensure anyone using the water where crocodiles occur undertakes that activity safely.

These 'restrictions' are designed to stop people from putting themselves into potentially dangerous situations. Under the conservation plan, a person must not bring a boat or vehicle within 10 metres of an estuarine crocodile in the wild unless they have a reasonable excuse. This restriction does not apply to commercial crocodile watching tours; however they will need to comply with a new commercial crocodile viewing code when they drive a boat or vehicle within 10 metres of an estuarine crocodile.

There are also a number of amendments to the Nature Conservation (Protected Areas Management) Regulation 2006 to ensure visitors to protected areas act safely in areas inhabited by estuarine crocodiles.

A person must not swim or stand knee-high or more than knee-high in water in a protected area where there is a sign warning of the presence of estuarine crocodiles, unless they have a reasonable excuse; or in a place where it ought to reasonably be known that estuarine crocodiles are frequently sighted, unless they have a reasonable excuse.

Swimming or standing in water when fishing are both high risk activities that have been associated with crocodile attacks in the past (since 1985, three out of every four crocodile attacks in Queensland have occurred while the victim was either swimming or wading near the water's edge).

What would be a reasonable excuse?

A reasonable excuse for entering the water in a protected area may be to get in or out of a boat. Similarly, a boat may have to go within 10 metres of a crocodile where a river is not wide enough to allow the boat to pass at that distance.

Does the '10 metre rule' apply to commercial crocodile watching tours?

As mentioned above, no. A person conducting a commercial activity to watch estuarine crocodiles in the wild can drive a boat or a vehicle within 10 metres of a crocodile as long as it is done in a way that complies with the Commercial crocodile viewing code.

How can I see what's in the crocodile viewing code?

The code is currently under development and will be posted on the department website shortly.

Why do I need to keep so far away from a crocodile?

Apart from the immediate safety risk, regular interactions with people can make crocodiles less wary of humans and boats. Where these interactions involve the provision of food, either inadvertently (e.g. throwing fish scraps into the water at a boat ramp) or through intentional feeding, a crocodile can even learn to approach people and boats.

In effect, by interacting with crocodiles people teach these animals to behave in ways that turn them into 'problem crocodiles' and create potentially dangerous situations.

Crocodiles are stealth predators and are well known for the way they take advantage of regular patterns in the behaviour of their prey. For example, an animal that passes a riverbank or drinks at a waterhole at the same time and place each day is the one that attracts the attention of a crocodile and is more likely to be stalked as prey. While a pattern of regular human interactions with a crocodile (e.g. the close presence of a boat) may involve many different people (and boats), a crocodile is still likely to see these independent events as being part of the one predictable pattern and respond to it accordingly.

Are you trying to stop people from going into the water in protected areas?

The Conservation Plan does not prohibit activities such as safe boating, the responsible use of boat ramps and safe fishing (where it is permitted in a protected area). The intention of this Plan is to discourage activities that unnecessarily expose members of the public to the risk of crocodile attack.

What is meant by the term 'protected area'?

By definition, protected areas include national parks, conservation parks, resource reserves, co-ordinated conservation areas and international agreement areas e.g. Ramsar wetlands.

The definition of a protected area does not include World Heritage Areas such as the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park (although a protected area may occur within a World Heritage Area e.g. a national park island within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park). Nature refuges are not included in the definition of a protected area for the purposes of this plan.

What is a penalty unit?

A penalty unit ($75) is the amount that has been determined by law (the Penalties and Sentences Act 1992) as the unit that is used to calculate the penalties associated with offences committed under Queensland legislation (e.g. a fine of 20 penalty units = 20 x $75 = $1500). Anyone swimming or wading in a protected area where there are warning signs indicating estuarine crocodiles are present, or where estuarine crocodiles have been frequently sighted or would normally be expected to live, can be fined. The proposed fine would have a maximum penalty of 100 penalty units ($7500).

In the Northern Territory both estuarine crocodiles and their eggs are harvested from the wild. Will this also happen in Queensland?

The Northern Territory has larger areas of intact crocodile habitat and breeding sites than Queensland. As a consequence, the estuarine crocodile population in the Northern Territory is far larger and has recovered better from past exploitation than the Queensland crocodile population.

Wild egg harvesting will only be considered on the basis of scientific evidence that it is ecologically sustainable and will not affect the recovery of estuarine crocodiles in Queensland.

A research program has been proposed to investigate the viability of a sustainable commercial harvest of wild crocodile eggs in Queensland.

Why does the Northern Territory have more crocodiles than Queensland?

The coastal region of the Northern Territory has an east-west orientation at a latitude that provides ideal habitat for estuarine crocodiles. Much of the Queensland coastline falls in more southerly latitudes and therefore provides less optimal crocodile habitat. Much of the habitat in these areas has also been altered and fragmented by human settlement. In the southern part of its range, winter temperatures reach a threshold below which crocodile eggs will not hatch and the longer cold periods significantly lower crocodile growth rates. The effect of a cooler climate on crocodiles can be seen in those animals kept in wildlife parks in southern Queensland. The crocodiles do not feed over winter as they cannot absorb enough warmth to digest food.

How do crocodiles contribute to north Queensland tourism?

Estuarine crocodiles are, in effect, the wildlife trademark for north Queensland.

A 2006 survey by James Cook University showed that crocodiles are one of the animals that international tourists most want to see as part of their experience of north Queensland's 'Croc country'.

Many wildlife parks throughout Queensland exhibit and feed crocodiles while the highlight of river-based wildlife tours in north Queensland is to see a large crocodile swimming or basking on a riverbank. These commercial attractions are also supported by an extensive range of tourist merchandise that provide mementos of visiting 'Croc country'.

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Last updated: 31 March 2008

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