Dear Editor,

With the tragic news last weekend of a young father being taken by a 4.9m crocodile in plain sight of his wife and with his three young sons nearby, we are again reminded of how lethal these prehistoric animals can be.

This family were not fishing or even in the water when disaster struck. The father slipped and fell into the water while walking with his family on a track on the banks of the Annan River near Cooktown, and almost immediately fell victim to the resident crocodile.

It’s hard to imagine the trauma and loss this young family has and will continue to suffer.

We are only too aware that interactions between large estuarine crocodiles and humans will continue to increase, as more people visit our remote areas, and the crocodile populations grow.

There is little doubt that the antiquated crocodile management plans need to be reviewed, and urgently.

We cannot rid our waterways of this apex predator however where, by its size location, or behaviour, a crocodile poses a threat to people in populated areas, or areas of high frequency visitations it should be removed.