SUNDAY MAIL (Brisbane, Australia) 18 August 05 Victim's wife opposed croc culling

The wife of a man killed by a crocodile once wrote a letter to a newspaper saying reptiles which killed humans should not be culled.

Glenda Jefferies wrote a letter to the Townsville Bulletin newspaper last year opposing the culling of crocodiles following an attack on Brisbane man Andrew Kerr at Bathurst Bay, east of Lakefield National Park.

Mrs Jefferies' husband Barry, 60, is presumed dead after a 400kg, four-metre crocodile dragged him from his canoe at the same national park in far north Queensland on Tuesday.

In the letter, Mrs Jefferies said the attack on Mr Kerr was "an isolated incident in an isolated area" which had "the usual bunch of crocodile experts, ex-shooters and pollies calling for a cull".

"Who would benefit most from trophy-hunting and culling of crocodiles? See above," she wrote.

"A sensible assessment of the situation is more worthy than the sensational outcry that culling would save human lives."

Authorities yesterday shot dead the croc suspected of the attack. But an autopsy carried out on the reptile last night by scientific and Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS) officers failed to find any trace of human remains.

Cairns police Inspector Mike Keating, who is co-ordinating the search for the fisherman's body, said despite the autopsy result, authorities could not rule out that the crocodile was the same one which dragged Mr Jefferies into the water.

"I don't think there's any guarantee that the crocodile would not have hidden the carcass, so to speak," Insp Keating said today.

Mr Jefferies had been trying to push the reptile away from the boat with a canoe paddle when it grabbed him by the arm.

His wife, who was fishing with him at the time, was thrown into the water when the canoe overturned but managed to swim to safety before raising the alarm.

Insp Keating said the crocodile had left bite marks on the paddle.

"We're hoping in due course, it won't be done immediately, that they'll be able to do some analysis of the crocodile that was shot and some of the marks on the paddle," he said.

QPWS officers are still searching a 3km stretch of the Midway Waterhole on the Normanby River, northwest of Cooktown, for any sign of Mr Jefferies.

Insp Keating said four crocodiles were believed to inhabit the area but no further crocs had been captured or killed.

"We're certainly not out there culling all the crocodiles," he said.

The couple's children Kerry and Troy, who are in their 20s, have driven to Cape York to be with their mother.
Victim's wife opposed croc culling

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