Saturday, 19 July 2008

Croc list 8

Two Britains crocs bought on EBay a few weeks ago


This was a gift given to me by a client - exceptional wrapping skills I say!

Friday, 18 July 2008

Thursday, 17 July 2008

Villagers free hunter from jaws of crocodile - guardian.co.uk

February 7 2006
A human chain of villagers pulled a hunter from the jaws of a crocodile in north-eastern Zimbabwe, state media reported yesterday.

Letikuku Sidumbu, 32, was attacked while trying to cross the swollen Mubvinzi river in the Goromonzi district, about 25 miles east of the capital, Harare, during a hunting expedition with his uncle.

As the crocodile clenched its jaws on his right arm, villagers tugged him from its grip in a struggle that also left the hunter with a broken leg and chest and stomach injuries, Mr Sidumbu told the state Herald newspaper from his hospital bed in Harare.

Wednesday, 16 July 2008

Tuesday, 15 July 2008

Disguise that took the intrepid zoologist into the crocodiles' lair

When Dr Brady Barr decided to dress up as a crocodile, the disguise needed to be good.

Otherwise he was in grave danger of being eaten by the real thing.

The zoologist adopted his bizarre outfit in the hope of getting closer to a colony of Nile crocodiles, which can grow up to 20ft.

His disguise was a prosthetic head attached to the front of a protective metal cage covered with canvas and a generous plastering of hippo dung to mask his human scent.


Dr Brady Barr in disguise: Within touching distance of the deadly croc

It was 13ft long - average Nile size. The head was made of glass fibre, while the frame of the body was aluminium covered with a sheet of Kevlar body armour.

Thus protected, he crawled on his hands and knees up to the fearsome reptiles, close enough to touch them.

The most dramatic moment in a documentary film about Dr Barr comes when he is approaching the largest croc on the riverbank - and mistakenly makes a sudden movement. It suddenly turns to face him head-to-head. Dr Barr whispers into his microphone: "Oh, the big one is moving towards me. He has his eye on me. I'm really nervous. I've got to back off!"


Dr Barr creeps up behind the animal he's studying

But just as he is about to retreat, another moves up behind him.

A sweating Dr Barr whispers to the camera crew: "Now I'm stuck between two giant crocs. How close is the one behind me?"

Back comes the answer: "Next to your right leg."

"So it's unsafe for me to get up and move, right?" "I would say so!"

Dr Barr, 44, claims to be unique in having studied all 23 species of crocodilian - crocodiles, alligators and caymans - in the wild.

For his latest quest, he travelled to Tanzania, where Nile crocodiles lurk in riverbank mud holes during the dry season and crowd on top of each other in burrows. When a hippo and her calf sniffed inquisitively at him, no doubt attracted by his coating of dung, he stayed as calm as possible.

"That could have been a very dangerous situation," said Texas-born Dr Barr. "And that was before I'd even seen a croc."


It's a slow crawl as a crocodile, but will the real thing spot his digital watch?

Ultimately he managed to infiltrate the crocodiles' lair and attach to their tails small hi-tech 'data loggers' which monitor their activity and give scientists biological information such as the temperatures in their dens.

At least one-third of all crocodile species are endangered, and his extraordinary activities have the aim of bringing worldwide attention to their plight.


Dr Barr inside his hippo dung-smeared croc contraption

"Crawling up to the crocs wasn't easy," he added. "Worse was scrambling inside their lair.

"Any time you do that, you are asking for trouble. I am worried that I am getting too old and slow. I'm starting to understand that I can't take as many chances as I have in the past."

Monday, 14 July 2008

Gator... or shark...

While sports fishing off the Florida coast, a tourist capsized his boat. He could swim, but his fear of alligators kept him clinging to the overturned craft. Spotting an old beachcomber standing on the shore, the tourist shouted, "Are there any gators around here?!"

"Naw," the man hollered back, "they ain't been around for years!"

"Feeling safe, the tourist started swimming leisurely toward the shore. About halfway there he asked the guy, "How'd you get rid of the gators?"

"We didn't do nothin'," the beachcomber said.

"The sharks got 'em."

Sunday, 13 July 2008

Slaughtered gators found near Lake Trafford marina - naplesnews.com

October 26, 2007

Five alligators have been discovered slaughtered, with all but one of them butchered, by poachers at a northeast Collier County marina.

The reptiles were found floating in the water, missing their heads, feet and tails, near Lake Trafford Marina on Wednesday, said Ski Olesky, marina owner.

“They were butchered for the meat and the head for a trophy,” Olesky said.

It is currently alligator hunting season, but hunters must have a permit to hunt one gator and each one killed must be tagged and taken to a processing center, according to a representative of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Florida Fish and Wildlife officers are investigating.

The penalties for illegal alligator hunting, a second-degree misdemeanor, is a $500 fine and a maximum 60 days of jail time, Fish and Wildlife spokeswoman Joy Hill said Friday.

Olesky, who has been giving tours on Lake Trafford for the past 30 years, said this was the worst case he has ever seen.

“It doesn’t help my business for sure. We try to educate people with the alligators and not destroy the alligators,” he said.

Olesky, who opposes hunting gators, said during alligator hunting season, which runs from Aug. 1 to Nov. 1, he typically finds two to three dead alligators floating in the water near his marina.


To report a hunting violation, call 1-888-404-FWCC (3922).