Wanted: volunteers to move 400 crocs

By Jano Gibson

Posted Mon Sep 28, 2009

A Northern Territory wildlife park is seeking volunteers to relocate some of its dangerous inhabitants.

Crocodylus Park, which operates as a zoo and commercial crocodile farm in Darwin, needs helpers to shift about 400 saltwater crocodiles into new ponds.

"It's a bit of an adventure," says the park's research director, Matt Brien, who has had about 15 people sign up for the chance to get up close and personal with the feared reptiles.

But he still needs more.

"The more the merrier. The reason being we try to take as many precautions as possible," he said.

"Ideally we'd have two people handling every animal. It's a lot safer [than one person]."

The mass relocation, which is taking place on Wednesday, is needed to ensure larger crocs at the park are not kept in the same pond as smaller ones.

"If there are big ones with little ones, problems occur," Mr Brien said.

Before moving the creatures, which range in size between 1.2 metres and 2 metres, an electric shock is used to stun them, and then tape is wrapped around their mouths and eyes.

"Otherwise you can imagine how dangerous it would be trying to round up [the] crocs]."

Mr Brien says the relocation, which usually takes place about once a year for animals of this size, is a great opportunity for people who want to see what it is like to work with crocs.

"Usually [we get] backpackers and students, people doing degrees with animals," he said.

"It gives them an opportunity to handle large reptiles, an opportunity they wouldn't normally get."

He says once the animals reach more than 2 metres in length, they will be used for skins and meat.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/09/28/2698256.htm