Hello from Croker Island
The last month we have had quite a lot of days with strong wind warnings in place. The last week however has seen a break from the strong winds so we have taken advantage of this to get a few boat patrols done.
Charlie Wadaga's sharp eyes scan the sea looking for anything unusual or suspicious.
On one boat patrol we came across a pole floating almost vertically in the water just off the east coast of Croker Island. A closer examination revealed an eight metre bamboo pole.
Charlie brings the pole onto the boat revealing some mussels on the submerged parts of the pole.
We suspected that the bamboo pole and mussels had drifted from Indonesia which immediately raised biosecurity concerns. We took photos, recorded details and sent them off to Biosecurity Australia.
Some may recall earlier this year a couple of nets we retrieved and deposited in a calm corner of a bay. Due to the wet season and the boggy tracks we were unable to access this area until recently. The nets were drag out of the water to dry and then burnt along with some other marine litter that we collected along this section of the beach.
The residents and rangers have noticed a huge increase in the amount of marine litter being washed up on the beaches of Croker Island. This has become a huge problem, not only on Croker Island but also in many places around the planet.
Recently some of the Garngi rangers attended a training course on fuel reduction burning on nearby Goulburn Island. Below Shaun, Clayton and Sabrina are waiting for their charter flight to the training. Fuel reduction burning is a very important part of our work at this time of the year. After the west season there is a large amount of grass which is now drying out. By burning it now, while there is still some green in the grass, the fire will burn slower and avoid large, very hot and out of control fires later in the year which cause much damage to the plants and animals. The science is also telling us that these large 'hot' fires also result in much more carbon being sent up into the atmosphere. They also kill trees or scorch the lower parts trees which in turn reduces their ability to absorb carbon.
The male rangers recently conducted a boat patrol while the girls conducted a vehicle based beach patrol. We had received a report of a 'ghost' net snagged to a reef near Adamarragu. We located it, however we will have to return at a very low tide to cut it free from the reef.
We arranged to meet the girls at Wanakutja for lunch. Wanakutja is located on a sheltered bay however the water was quite shallow for the last 300 metres, requiring a slow and cautious approach. Charlie, sensing there may be an opportunity to spear a fish or stingray grabs his spear and scans the clear shallow waters.
The girls had brought along some of the older ladies so there was quite a group to share lunch but plenty to go around.
While enjoying lunch Clayton spotted a stingray swimming in the shallows. He grabbed his spear and raced down the beach. The following series of photos tells the story of what happened.
His aim was true however it did not disabled the stingray. Below the hunter chases the stingray through the shallow water to retrieve his spear.........
When the water gets too deep, Clayton has to abandon the chase........
And watch his spear being carried off by the stingray...........
After about 20 minutes of patient waiting, the stingray returned to the shallows. Clayton's son finished the job.
At the right time of the year, when the stingray are fat they are highly sort after to eat.
Returning to continue lunch. Notice the clear blue skies - we are now in the Top End's dry season.
After lunch we continued the boat patrol and the girls went on their way. Approaching Adjamarragu Point we noticed a large male crocodile on the beach and decide to take a closer look.
He allowed us to get to about 100 metres from him before entering the water. The crocodile numbers on and around Croker Island have been increasing over recent years. In the NT crocodile numbers are controlled by a managed harvesting of crocodile eggs in the wild. In this area, no such harvesting happens at the moment.
The sun sets as we approached the boat ramp. It was a long, but worthwhile day.
Until next time, take care.
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