Wildlife officers from the Department of Environment and Science will be better equipped to survey, track and trap crocodiles across Queensland with a new croc vessel launched in Bundaberg recently.
The vessel will be stationed in Bundaberg permanently and will be used to travel to various areas of croc country as part of the DES crocodile management program.
A DES spokesperson said croc country began at the Boyne River south of Gladstone, and extended northward, up the east coast and across Far North Queensland.
“However crocodiles can sometimes also be found outside of croc country,” the spokesperson said.
“Crocodiles are reported infrequently in the Wide Bay region but there hasn’t been a confirmed sighting since 2014.”
The DES spokesperson said the new croc vessel would allow teams to get further up shallower creeks that had previously been inaccessible.
“It also has custom features allowing them to swiftly and silently survey river systems, including side scanners and a panoptic camera” the spokesperson said.
“The vessel can travel across Queensland to support crocodile and other wildlife operations.”
If you see a crocodile in Queensland report it to the Department of Environment and Science via:
- the QWildlife app
- Report a sighting online
- call 1300 130 372
DES advises that crocodiles are highly mobile and the longer you take to report a sighting, the less likely it is that the crocodile will be located.
