SUNDAY TIMES (Perth, Australia) 17 October 04 Was croc hunting baby? (David Murray)
A crocodile that dragged a camper from his tent in far north Queensland this week may have been hunting the man's baby.
Experts and some of the campers involved suspect the baby's cries or movements attracted the 4.2m crocodile.
The 300kg crocodile's tracks reveal it took the shortest route from the ocean to a tent containing the three-month-old boy – the youngest member of the large camping group.
"He knew exactly where he was going. He had made a beeline for that tent," Jason Sorohan told The Sunday Times.
"Whether he was after the baby originally or had heard him squawking through the night . . . you don't really know."
The group has been trying to understand why the crocodile targeted their group in the first place. And why it went straight for a tent housing Andrew Kerr, his wife Diane and their baby son Kelly.
It ignored a large gazebo containing food in front of the five tents. Other tents were also closer to the water.
Crocodile expert Mark Read, who works for Queensland Parks and Wildlife, said while the baby may have attracted the crocodile the exact cause would never be known.
"It could have been a contributing factor for sure," he said.
"It's possible the baby may have been crying or moving or wriggling in the tent. That might have encouraged the crocodile to take a second look."
He said campers with young children should make an extra effort to set their camp away from water.
Crocodiles could be attracted to as little as dirty fishing clothes, bloody scraps and bones left in boats, or even family dogs.
"Crocodiles have an excellent sense of smell," he said. "They are very good at finding food."
Bill Sorohan, whose wife Alicia jumped on the crocodile's head as it dragged away a family friend, said the area's dangers were never far from thought.
"We were pretty particular in what we did. We used to wash the bench down and keep everything clean around it," he said.
"We never left any scraps around. I always used to put it in a bucket and if they didn't go in the crab pots we'd take them out to sea.
"We don't go for a swim in the creeks or rivers. We don't walk down to the water's edge and stand on the edge fishing.
"If we're going to fish off the shore, we go far back off the water to give yourself a bit of a chance if there is something there."
Another camper had left just as they arrived and the fire on the site was still warm.
"I'm not blaming him, he might have done the right thing," he said. "But you don't know what other people have done there."
Mr Sorohan was also questioning whether the baby could have been the target of the attack but said he had resigned himself to never knowing.
Hartley's Crocodile Adventures wildlife manager David Leyden said the crocodile may have been in the area for some time, or could have just been passing through when it detected a food source.
"They are opportunistic and if the opportunity arises for them to feed they'll probably take it," he said.
"It may have been travelling through the area that night and heard the baby cry. Or there are numerous other possibilities."
Was croc hunting baby?