South African Crocodile Farm Charged with Cruelty against Crocs.

In high demand from the fashion industry for their skins; crocodile farming has become a substantial, international business over the last three decades or so.  At Everything Dinosaur, we frequently report on crocodile attacks and encounters between the public and nuisance crocodiles that pose a threat, but our own species exploiting these ancient creatures is rarely reported upon.  However, South Africa’s national society for the prevention of cruelty to animals (SPCA) has brought criminal charges against a crocodile farm based in northern KwaZulu-Natal over the way in which crocodiles are being kept.

Crocodile Farmer

SPCA national council inspector Nazareth Appalsamy stated that charges of animal cruelty had been put upon Coen Labuschagne, who runs Metcroc Boerdery as he has allegedly contravened both the South African National Standard of Crocodiles in Captivity Act and the National Animal Protection Act.

Up to two hundred crocodiles, some of which exceed two metres in length are being kept in what has been described as “coffin-shaped” enclosures, less than two metres long, approximately 1.8 metres wide and in water only about thirty centimetres deep.  The animals are being kept in what are termed finishing pens.  To improve the saleable quality of the animal’s skin, the crocodiles are separated and put into individual pens so that other crocodiles don’t damage the hide.  The reptiles are being kept in pens that are so small, that some of the larger animals are unable to turn round or to lie out straight as their body length exceeds the length of the enclosure.

Denied shade, heating and the company of other crocodiles animal welfare officers suspect that the animals are suffering considerable distress.  Many animals are unable to leave the water that they have been provided with, the pens are just to small to house crocodiles of this size.

Commenting on the conditions, Mr Appalsamy stated:

“Some of the crocodiles themselves are more than two metres in length and so their tails are bent in the enclosure, or their heads have to be permanently at an angle.  They basically cannot lie or rest straight.  There is no shade cloth or shelter or any heating requirements, which would be necessary depending on the season.”

Crocodile Farm Visits

He went on to add that the SPCA’s action was supported by Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife which also visited the farm to inspect the conditions in which the crocodiles were being kept.  It is unfortunate, that whilst the demand for crocodile belts, shoes and handbags still exists there is the temptation to maximise profits at the expense of the animal’s welfare.

A spokesperson for Everything Dinosaur commented:

“People get very upset when they hear stories about cruelty to animals that are being kept in captivity for their fur, or when young seals are clubbed to death for their hides, but animal welfare issues extend beyond the “cute and cuddly” and it is important to ensure that other commercial industries such as crocodile farming are properly regulated to.”

SPCA inspector Mr Appalsamy said that a permit application from Labuschagne had been received about three months ago, but this was opposed, however, the organisation was alerted when another nearby crocodile farmer reported that the pens had been built.

A spokesperson for the SPCA who visited the site, said what they saw was “shocking and cruel.”

According to news sources Mr Labuschagne was in Mozambique and denied any knowledge of the criminal charges laid against him, he also denied that the conditions in which some of the crocodiles were being housed were considered cruel.

He went onto deny the measurements of the pens as given by the SPCA stating:

“That’s a lie.  It is wrong what they are saying. I don’t know where they got those measurements from.”

The case has highlighted welfare conditions for crocodiles in southern Africa and the charges will probably result in court proceedings.

For models and replicas of crocodilians and other archosaurs: Archosaurs, Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animal Toys.

Local Fisherman Catches 2.5-metre-long Crocodile

Queensland residents and Government officials are calling for a cull of Saltwater crocodiles as the number of close encounters with these potential man-eaters continues to increase.  One of the latest crocodile incidents took place near the town of Port Douglas (Queensland), when a local angler caught more than he bargained for when a 2.5 metre long crocodile grabbed his bait.

Twenty-nine year old school teacher, Jamie Finger was fishing at a popular spot, the old Mowbray River bridge, helping to bag himself one or two nice specimens when the crocodile grabbed the prawn that the keen angler has been using as bait.  A ten minute struggle followed as the crocodile refused to let go and Mr Fisher stubbornly held on in a bid to try to save his fishing rod.

Mr Finger, who had been fishing alone managed to get some remarkable pictures of his strange catch, before the crocodile, tired of the fishing tug of war and let the bait go, perhaps preferring to go after the barramundi, that had been Mr Finger’s original target.

When asked about his crocodilian encounter, brave Mr Finger stated that he had seen a crocodile lurking near the bridge before it disappeared under the murky brown water.  A few minutes later in a scene reminiscent from the movie “Jaws” his reel began spinning and crocodile appeared below him.

Commenting on his ordeal, Jamie said:

“At first I just thought, I’ve got a big one here, and then this croc came up and began death rolling.  At least with a shark, if you get it on land, you have some hope.  But crocs have legs.  They keep going.  I  took a few photos and a video because I thought no one would believe I had caught a croc.”

After a ten-minute fight the Saltwater crocodile let go, spitting out the bait and the hook.  Leaving Mr Finger with just a fisherman’s tale to tell.

A spokesperson from Everything Dinosaur stated:

“The Saltwater crocodile was in the area doing exactly what Mr Finger was doing – looking for some fish.  Fish tend to congregate in areas of slack water in rives such as around the supports of a bridge, the presence of prey would have attracted the crocodile to the location and the splashing a the bait hit the water would have induced this predator to attack”.

The Difference Between a Crocodile and an Alligator

Crocodile (top) and Alligator (bottom).

There have been a number of crocodile encounters reported in the Australian media over the last few days, all involving Saltwater crocodiles.  A crocodile had to be removed from a golf course north of Cairns when it got too close to the clubhouse and a two metre long reptile attacked a car in the Mackay district.  Local ministers and officials have called for a cull of adult animals or a policy of crocodile nest destroying to try to reduce the numbers of these man-eaters in areas where people tend to go.

Local MP Warren Entsch, a former crocodile farmer stated:

“Encounters with crocodiles are increasing up here.  There is a strong argument for removal, whether it’s eggs or grown crocs out of populated areas.” 

Certainly, it is true that crocodile populations have increased rapidly since hunting and trapping was banned.  There have been further calls for culls in other areas of Queensland as well in the Northern Territories.  With Saltwater crocodiles capable of growing to lengths in excess of six metres, these formidable predators pose a series threat to locals and tourists.

To view prehistoric animal models including ancient crocodilians: Mojo Fun Prehistoric and Extinct Figures.

Saltwater Crocodiles Stalk Australian Fisherman and American Crocodile Grabs Pet

This week there have been a number of news stories about crocodiles, the majority focusing on what crocodiles do best, ambushing prey.  In Australia, a local fisherman was stalked by large Saltwater crocodiles for three days as flood waters encircled his remote fishing lodge, whilst in America a rare American crocodile attacked and killed a large, pet dog.

Unfortunately, crocodile attacks are a relatively common occurrence as tourists and fishermen venture into crocodile habitats.  The increasing number of Saltwater (Crocodylus porosus), otherwise known as Estuarine crocodiles in northern Australia has led to a number of reports of attacks by these huge, reptilian predators.

Attacks in Florida by the American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) are much less frequent than attacks by the more common and generally thought to be the more aggressive American alligator, but for one Sunshine State couple such an attack led to the loss of their pet dog – Roxie.

The Difference Between a Crocodile and an Alligator

Crocodile (top) and Alligator (bottom).

When Janet and Larry Porath and their visiting family returned to their Key Largo home from a late lunch out, they heard a splash as they relaxed in their waterfront  facing backyard.  It was the splash caused by a crocodile attack, ambushing their pet dog and dragging her into the water.

Crocodile Attack

According to the witnesses, the crocodile leaped at least four feet out of the water to snatch the 65-pound mixed breed dog head-first off the seawall.  The crocodile, estimated to be around 4 metres in length, was seen by neighbours swimming a few feet from the Poraths’ house.  Roxie was in its mouth.

The poor dog never stood a chance and after the fatal encounter the Porath’s accompanied by friends and neighbours set out to find the crocodile and to retrieve the body of their family pet.

Meanwhile, over in Australia a fisherman had a billiard table to thank for keeping him safe from a potential crocodile attack.  Sixty-five year-old Terry Donovan was relaxing at a remote fishing cabin at the Staaten River Fishing and Wilderness Lodge in northern Queensland when he became cut off by rising flood waters.

As the waters rose, he spotted a number of large crocodiles lurking in the water, one of which attacked a sheltering wallaby on the back deck of the fishing hut.

A shaken Mr Donovan said that he was afraid that the flood waters would permit one of the large four-metre-long crocs to swim into the hut and attack him.

“The first one I saw was sitting out the back on the veranda in about a foot of water, maybe a bit more.  I thought to myself, ‘Well, there’s a warning, there’s a crocodile there.  Where there’s one, there’s probably two or three or more’.”

Donovan said a second crocodile placed itself underneath the house, after he spotted it through a window.  Becoming very concerned for his own safety Mr Donovan sort refuge on top of a billiard table, the highest place that he could find.

With some supplies packed around him, Mr Donovan watched the water level rise inch by inch.

He said:

“The water just kept going up and up and up, and it was just an inch or so above the nets where the balls are collected by the billiard table, and I thought, ‘Well, the next step is the roof, I’m out of here’.”

The plucky fisherman was rescued from his three day stand off when he was eventually spotted by a passing helicopter which had gone to check on him after he failed to answer his satellite phone.  Officials then alerted a local fishermen who set out to rescue him.  Had the water level risen any higher, Mr Donovan is certain that the crocodiles would have attacked.

To view Everything Dinosaur’s award-winning website: Everything Dinosaur.

International Team Unravels the Genome of the World’s Largest Reptile

Crocodile farm owners, palaeontologists, cladistics specialists and geneticists hope to reap the benefits of the research into Saltwater crocodile genes after a team of international scientists completed the genome sequence of this, the largest extant species of reptile.

Estuarine Crocodile Genome

The Saltwater, or Estuarine crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) is found throughout S.E. Asia, with a geographical distribution from Sri Lanka to northern Australia, this species is the mainstay of the crocodile farming industry in Asia and it is hoped that a better understanding of the genome sequence will help improve commercial crocodile breeding techniques.  In Australia alone, the crocodile industry is estimated to be worth some $8.8 million AUD in exports.

Professor Chris Moran (Sydney University’s Faculty of Veterinary Science), one of the researchers working on this genome project stated:

“We had previously completed a genome map for the Saltwater crocodile but this is a huge leap forward.  Genome sequencing is the next step.  The difference between genome mapping and genome sequencing is the difference between having a map of Australia on a single page and a detailed street directory.”

Advances in DNA sequencing technology, so-called next generation or “nextgen” sequencing, have provided between one thousand and a ten thousand-fold reduction in cost, along with comparable increases in the speed with which whole genome sequences can be generated.  The scientists estimate that a complete genome for a complex vertebrate such as a crocodile can be mapped out for a few thousand dollars, at the start of this century, to undertake such a project would have cost millions of dollars.

One of the immediate benefits to commercial crocodile farm owners is that this sequenced genome will help them to identify individual animals for breeding programmes.  Crocodiles do not become mature and able to breed until they are seven years old, which means that, currently, breeders have to wait that long before they can choose suitable breeding stock.  The genome sequencing methodology permits selection for breeding programmes at a much earlier age.  DNA samples can be taken as soon as the animals hatched and once analysed the information in the genes can be used to determine which animals will be suitable for breeding.

Professor Moran explained how the process works:

“This is possible because the genome sequence identifies genetic ‘markers’ which provide information on the likely health and breeding quality of an animal.”

Professor Moran worked on the genome sequence with his University of Sydney colleague Dr Jaime Gongora, along with PhD students Amanda Chong and Pauline Dalzell together with research affiliates Dr Sally Isberg and Dr Lee Miles.

The research team have been working on the genetics and genomics of farmed Saltwater crocodiles since 2001 with funding from the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation.

Other outcomes of the genome sequencing work include a better understanding of the evolutionary relationships among crocodilians, especially between the alligator family and crocodile family.  It also will have implications for palaeontologists as they strive to obtain a greater  understanding of crocodilians’ relationships to other reptiles, including their closest living relatives, the birds.  The research papers were published in the scientific journal “Genome Biology”.

In unrelated research, a number of scientists have been studying the anti-bacterial properties of crocodilian blood.  An improved understanding of crocodile genomes may indirectly help speed up the development of new, anti-bacterial agents.

For models and replicas of crocodiles and alligators (whilst stocks last): Mojo Fun Prehistoric Life and Extinct Models.

Caiman Dumped Outside Pet Shop

With the economic downturn and with a large number of people finding it hard to manage their finances many expensive to keep, exotic pets are being abandoned.  A three-foot long crocodile was dumped outside a pet shop in the West Midlands yesterday (Thursday).