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Oh snap! Huge 14.5ft crocodile caught at tourist hotspot

A 14.5ft (4.4m) saltwater crocodile weighing 770lbs (349kg) has been trapped by wildlife rangers at an Australian tourist hotspot.

The croc is the biggest caught in the area in years, wildlife ranger John Burke claimed.

The huge male was caught in the Flora River at a remote nature park 75 miles southwest of the Outback town of Katherine in Australia's Northern Territory, which is popular with travellers.

Mr Burke said he did not know of a larger crocodile caught in the Flora River.

The number of crocodiles have been increasing across Australia's tropical north since federal law made them a protected species in the early 1970s.

"They certainly are increasing (in number), and that's part of the reason we have the management zones - to reduce the numbers in high-visitation areas so there's less chance of interaction between salties and people," Mr Burke said, referring to saltwater crocodiles.

The saltwater crocodile, which was hunted for its skin throughout its range up to the 1970s, is capable of prevailing over almost any animal that enters its territory - including other predators such as sharks.

Reference: Sky News: Lucia Binding, news reporter 13 hrs ago: 31/08/2020