Darwin – Travels Round The World

Where in the World Are We?

We are at Uluru, or Ayres Rock, Australia.

DARWIN, AUSTRALIA
A NEW-FOUND PARADISE FOR SALTIES
With an estimated population of between 100 and 200,000 individuals in the Northern Territory, the saltwater crocodile, or Crocodylus Porosus, is a species that has come a long way. Decimated for decades, the saltwater crocodile came close to joining the long list of extinct species: by the 1970s, it had become 98% extinct in Australia.

If today, its population – equivalent to or greater than that of the Northern Territory, according to estimates – seems to be in good health, the situation is the result of a long process of protection first, then population management – both saurian and human – and lastly, and above all, raising awareness among the local population. For the local people, the Saltie was first and foremost an animal whose leather could make you rich, but it was also a relentless killer, capable of stalking for hours on end and wiping out livestock, domestic animals and humans with a single blow from its impressive jaws. With a size that can exceed 6 metres and a weight of one ton (20 feet for 2200 pounds), the animal is a true survivor from the age of the dinosaurs, with the difference that today it is the largest living saurian.

Once the ban on killing the Saltie had been put in place, it was necessary to step up campaigns aimed at the population, for whom the increase in crocodile numbers also meant a proportional increase in the risk of being eaten while fishing, swimming or trying to refresh themselves in a billabong (see Crocodile Dundee for reference). This prospect was not a happy one, so the population had to be educated and made to understand that a live crocodile could be more valuable alive than in a handbag, but that precautions also had to be taken. Safety poster campaigns were run and signs along the rivers were put up, while reptile transfers out of populated areas were organised. You can’t teach a crocodile that you don’t eat people or livestock, but you can keep it away from areas where it is likely to come across them…

At the same time, to compensate for the loss of income, authorised harvesting of wild eggs has been introduced and landowners, many of whom are Aborigines, are paid by the breeding farms for the 70,000 eggs that can be collected each year from the wild alongside 1,400 crocodiles. The skins produced here are among the highest quality in the world, and Hermes and Vuitton source them from the Northern Territory. A whole economy has been created around the Saltie, the tourism it generates and the breeding farms. Activities that bring in over A$100 million a year to the Northern Territory and provide work for a large number of local people. So much the better for the saurians, but tourists beware: always assume there’s a crocodile in the water, whatever happens.

WWII TUNNELS
Near the waterfront are some original WWII Oil Storage Tunnels. Darwin has a well-known history of its involvement in WWII and a large part of the city was bombed during raids by the Japanese. The old oil tunnels are still the original tunnels they built for WWII and were supposed to be used to store fuel. You can escape from the heat of the day by walking through the WWII oil-storage tunnels and explore the exhibit of wartime photos.

SIGHTS