Rangers capture crocodile menace
The beast is tamed: Rangers Zynal Cox, standing left, Brendan Smith, Ninjana Walsham watch over Mark Rothery, front left, Preston Cox, Broome Crocodile Park's Chris Baker, Yoshi Akune, Department of Parks and Wildlife's Peter Carstairs. Picture: Nyul Nyul rangers.
This is the crocodile believed to have been stalking fishermen and nudging up to their tinnies in WA's remote north.
The 3.3m reptile was captured in a trap laced with feral donkey bait by Kimberley Land Council Nyul Nyul rangers at Beagle Bay, about 70km north of Broome.
They nicknamed the animal Jimmy, which managed to snap tape wrapped around its snout and throw its captors into a temporary panic before being pinned down by five men on August 19.
People were this week encouraged to stay out of water around Broome after several sightings of a big saltwater crocodile near the port and Entrance Point, forcing the closure of nearby Reddell Beach.
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One witness estimated it was about 3.9m long.
The Department of Parks and Wildlife said its size was unknown but reports suggested it was big enough to be dangerous.
A 3.2m crocodile - dubbed Burrgukk by Nyul Nyul rangers after the local land name - was caught at Beagle Bay just over a month ago after complaints one had been acting aggressively near a popular swimming and fishing location.
Jimmy and Burrgukk have both been sent to the Broome Crocodile Park where they will become parts of its breeding program.
The rangers are confident they have the animal that was menacing the public.
"I believe this was the crocodile that we were targeting locally but you can never be sure," ranger co-ordinator Mark Rothery said. "It struggled a bit and broke some nose band we put on it, which caused a bit of drama."
Mr Rothery said the trapping was all in a day's work for his indigenous team but the locals had shown their appreciation.
