Conservation and management of crocodiles
Estuarine crocodiles (Crocodylus porosus) are listed as vulnerable under the Nature Conservation Act 1992. They were nearly hunted to extinction in Queensland prior to 1974, and habitat destruction is now considered a major threat to their survival in Queensland. The Queensland Crocodile Management Plan, together with the Nature Conservation (Estuarine Crocodile) Conservation Plan 2007, provides Queensland’s strategic management framework to ensure the conservation of estuarine crocodiles in the wild, and reduce the risk to public safety. The purpose of these plans is to conserve viable populations in the wild, enhance public safety, prevent losses in the aquaculture industries from problem crocodiles, and ensure the commercial use of estuarine crocodiles is sustainable.
Queensland’s management approach also incorporates a 3-year monitoring and research program, which was completed in December 2019, a CrocWatch telephone and online service for reporting and investigating crocodile sightings, and a Crocwise public safety education campaign.
The 3-year scientific monitoring program will provide updated abundance and distribution data for the estuarine crocodile species across its range, and will be used to inform future management practices. DES is currently analysing the data and will prepare a comprehensive scientific report in consultation with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Crocodile Specialist Group, which will be delivered in the second half of 2020.
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