Aussie tourists stunned by giant crocodile’s ‘opportunistic’ feed
The croc captured the lunchtime feast in front of boatloads of tourists on the Daintree River.
Tourists could not believe their eyes when witnessing a crocodile catch and eat a giant python in front of them.
A group of boats were on a tour of the Daintree River in Queensland on Monday when they saw the crocodile, lovingly known as Scuter, catch her unexpected prey.
"The snake was on a low branch and she saw it moving and grabbed it," David White, owner of Solar Whisper Daintree River Crocodile, told Yahoo News Australia.
Crocs can go for long periods of time without eating and are often seen "doing nothing" so David shared the incredible image of Scuter feeding on the scrub python in a local Facebook group, with many responding in excitement.
Well-known crocodile Scuter full of surprises
Scuter is beloved by her local community and many from the Daintree area were happy to see the thriving girl enjoying a meal.
"Sure looks like you enjoyed your lunch Scuter," one person replied.
"She looks so big seen from the front like this," another said.
According to David, who has owned his Daintree tour business for 26 years, Scuter was first said to be a male crocodile in 2002 by the Department of Environment and Tourism. Then, in 2021 at the age of 22, Scuter surprised everyone by having babies.
"For 19 years we thought she was a male. [Then] she had her first litter at 22 which is quite late, the normal age is around 12-15 years old," David explained.
Do you have a wildlife story? Contact reporter Laura Koefoed at laura.koefoed@yahooinc.com
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Crocodiles have been caught eating stranger things
Crocodiles are carnivores and usually eat small mammals, birds, fish, crabs or any meat they that's easily available where they are. A crocodile is an "opportunistic" creature who waits for prey to come close enough that they can ambush them, which is why a person or animal is generally safe from being dinner if they don't swim in croc territory and stay at least five metres clear of the water's edge.
As well as the usual meals, there have been reports of crocodiles in Australia eating some other pretty strange things.
"I've seen a crocodile swallow and entire can of dog food," David shared.
Crab pots sometimes use cans of dog food with holes punctured into it to attract their catch, but the smell of the meat also attracts crocs who can break into the netting and swallow the bait — tin can and all.
A couple of years ago, David also snapped a crocodile catching and eating a plastic water bottle. David was concerned watching human litter being consumed by the native animal.
“[The Daintree River] is a product that the tourism people push and sell, and we should be looking after it to maintain our tourism industry," he told Yahoo at the time.
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