After the death of Arthur Booker there have been calls to cull crocodiles in northern Australia http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/10/02/2380772.htm. These calls have been dismissed by the Queensland government.

While I wouldn't support killing crocodiles everywhere in the north, I think a case can be made for thinning their numbers near human habitation. We manage sharks in this way so why not crocs?

The crocodile may have once been in danger of extinction, but its numbers have swelled since it became illegal to shoot them. They also appear to have repopulated some areas where they had disappeared. The time has come to use some active management which is a bit more than just moving potentially troublesome crocs on.

It's not just their environment, it's our environment too.

Graham

There are more fatalities from sharks, snakes, lightning, bee stings, scuba drownings and motor vehicles than from crocodile attacks, which averages about 0.7 deaths per year in Australia.

In other countries, thanks to homo-sapiens, crocodiles are now a threatened species.

And of course when we humans poach and destroy the crocs' food sources, they get a bit hungry occasionally and will take a foolish human - wouldn't you?

So I'd say "Don't provoke the natives!"

It also appears that Queenslanders are the most vociferous in their desire to cull the crocs even though the NT has more fatalities than Queensland.

However, rogue crocs can be relocated to existing crocodile farms.

If the current situation becomes more dangerous why not poach and destroy their eggs as an effective culling method?

Better still, why not cull Australia's immigration numbers of "alien species?"

Shootin' tootin' cowboys are no longer in vogue!

Graham:

Crocodiles have been part of the environment for millions of years. If we are to share the environment with them, then we have to do it sensibly.

If we venture into Northern waters, we should do so acknowledging the fact that we could be sharing these waters with crocodiles that view us simply as food in their prehistoric eating chain.

The facts are clear! There are an awful lot of Crocs up there in the rivers and the ocean, but if we weigh the fatalities against the odds, then we come out pretty good counting the number of known fatalities attributable to Crocodile attack.

If we are to cull everything that we consider dangerous or threatening to man, then we could probably cull most of the world`s politicians for a start!

I agree that they should be culled.

I grew up in the NT and I recall a time when we could swim with reasonable safety in places that one wouldn't dare go near now. It was legal back then to shoot them. The problem I have with hunting them is that shooters used to often use live bait to attract them - like tying a young 'roo to a tree at the waterline. I've never got over seeing the remains of that sort of brutality.

I think their numbers have increased and, like any creature, if they deplete the food supply in one place then they'll expand their territory.

Since we live on the planet too I don't see any reason why our safe access to many of the places we can't use now should be less important than that of these repulsive reptiles.

Also, they can provide some reasonable source of leather and meat, apparently (yech). I think the suggestion of taking their eggs is a good one. In any case, however they're culled, I would prefer that it be by quota so that it can be done efficiently and as humanely as possible.

Dear Graham,

Australia Zoo Senior Wildlife Ranger, Barry Lyon
said that a crocodile cull would achieve nothing.

"It's not going to work, the thing with crocodiles is
that you can never guarantee that you've hunted
them all out. There's always going to be some
survivors and some moving in from other areas to take
their place."

He also said that crocodiles were an essential part
of the river and lagoon eco systems in the North.

"Crocodiles are a part of life in the North, and
people who chose to camp or fish in croc infested
waters needed to be on guard... stay out of the
water, camp well away from the water, go fishing in
a good sturdy high-sided boat..."

Lyon also warned campers against throwing food scraps
or fish carcasses in the rivers.

"That attracts crocs, it's like fast food for them and it
puts people in dangerous situations."

In the case of the tragedy, regarding the missing man,
perhaps an Environmental agency could go and try to find the
crocodile responsible, and get rid of it.

But culling
other crocodiles? As Barry Lyon says, will achieve
nothing.

I agree with Foxy and Cuphandle. Having lived in NQ for 20 years or so and being a keen fisherman, I'm very familiar with crocodiles and their habitats. Every time there's a (rare) croc fatality there's a call from some quarters to cull them, but it would actually achieve very little.

The only safe way to deal with crocodiles in their habitats is always to assume they're there, and to modify one's behaviour accordingly. Yes, occasionally someone will get careless and pay the price for it, but I think that culling crocodiles primarily because people act stupidly sometimes is a gross over-reaction.