The giant crocodile was found lurking near a boat ramp in the Katherine River, the predator is the longest-ever trapped in the region, at 4.71 meters long, CNN reported.
The National Geographic confirmed that 4.71-meter-long crocodile is the longest predator, which was captured in Australia. In 2011, the authorities registered the previous record holder was a 4.6 meter-long croc. Tracey Duldig, the acting director of Wildlife Operations in the Northern Territory said that local hunters sought to capture and isolate it so in order to prevent it from “interacting with humans.”
Authorities had tried in vain for years to bag the giant alligator, which is estimated to be 60 years old. Now, the reptile has to be taken to a croc farm in the Katherine region, said Ms Duldig. The Northern Territory Parks and Wildlife website always advises visitors to be “crocwise” because the alligators are unpredictable and extremely fast animals.
“We’ve called it a lot of things over the years because it’s been so hard to catch,”
senior wildlife officer John Burke told and added that hunters got to admire the size of the animal and how old it is. According to the official statement,
“He is the biggest crocodile ever removed from the Katherine River by the Wildlife Operations Unit.”
Saltwater crocodiles are a common feature of Australia’s tropical north and kill an average of two people a year.
