A video of a man pulling on a “timid” crocodile’s tail in an Australian stream has caused a stir after it was shared by an Instagram account praising the “bogan” for his actions. The disturbing footage has raised concerns for the “terrorized” reptile as wildlife authorities investigate the source of the footage.
At the beginning of the 43-second video, a man in a tank top and sandals asks the woman filming, “Did you get it?” He then wade into the water and repeatedly tugs on the animal’s tail.
His pal then stood in front of the camera, gave a big thumbs up, and the two posed with the crocodile. “Welcome to Australia,” he said, as the two women behind the camera giggled.
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After viewing the footage, professional crocodile trainer Tommy Hayes said he felt sorry for the animal, which seemed to want no attention whatsoever.
“This is a poor boy, he’s obviously scared, the new kid just wants to get away,” he told Yahoo News from the Northern Territory. “He’s lucky to be so close, why put him through something so traumatic? This is definitely a welfare issue.”
Attacks on humans in freshwater are extremely rare, but they may bite in defence if cornered.
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One theory is that the crocodile was stuck between two rocks and the man was trying to free it, but Hayes warned that even if this was the case, moving crocodiles should only be done by professionals, as as with snakes and koalas, there is a risk of injury to the animal or rescuer.
He accepts that men will always take part in silly stunts, but filming them only encourages others to do the same and believes it’s time Australia stopped laughing off such behaviour as “just boyish behaviour”.
“The practice of encouraging ridiculous stunts is ancient, but now it’s all about getting a reaction, and attention is the biggest currency on the planet right now,” he said.
“I don’t think it’s people doing stupid things, it’s just that it’s being filmed and posted. At the end of the day, what are they getting out of it? It gets 40,000 views, so what?”
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The footage, possibly taken in the Northern Territory, shows the man wearing a tank top bearing the logo of a Darwin-based concrete company, but the owner of the company told Yahoo News he does not know him.
The Sydney woman who originally uploaded the video to TikTok before a self-described bogan account copied and shared it on Instagram did not respond to Yahoo’s request for comment.
Queensland authorities investigated the video but found no evidence it was filmed in the state.
It is illegal to “disturb” crocodiles without a permit in the Northern Territory and doing so carries a fine, but it is unclear under what circumstances this occurred.
Many people took to Instagram to slam the video, with several saying: “Sometimes being from Australia is embarrassing.”
Others mocked him for tugging on the tail of a docile freshwater crocodile. “Oh, new guy! What a big guy,” someone joked. “Try and grab the other end,” challenged another.
Paul Bowen, who runs the pro-crocodile social media page Croc Conscious, called for more education on wildlife conservation and warned that handling wild animals can be dangerous.
“Just because the animal is not a saltwater crocodile does not mean it will not harm humans. It can bite to defend itself and cause serious injuries,” he said.
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