another croc shot at school this morning

[Waterrat]

Nick, if you're thinking about snake skulls or any small reptilian skulls, I can email you a detailed recipe.

 

[waruikazi]

Are you going to be the head pathologist Gordo? It's a wonderful job, especially if left for a day or two. It softens up the tissues, the organs get mushy but the best part is the stomach contents. Bits of old catfish fixed in the rotting sludge - the gastroliths are the more exciting part of the operation. Your students will love it! Don't eat breakfast on the day.

HA! If it's not a fresh croc i'm not going anywhere near it

As someone who was a taxidermist for 30+ years, don't boil the skull - it can decalcify the bones and it will loosen the teeth and any ligamentary connections on the skull. The best thing to do is get a very sharp knife and remove as much meat and tissue as you can, then soak it in just cool water, changing it every 2-3 days until the tissue rots off. Very stinky until the process is almost finished, but should produce a good clean result. Crocs have all that tough connective tissue/skin on their heads and jaws, which you can only remove by rotting it off. Sometimes adding a bit of an enzyme-based washing powder can speed up the process - they begin the process of digesting the tissue fairly quickly (some of you will know how stinky clothes can be if you leave them in the machine and forget them... that's enzyme action and biodegradability!)

Be very careful as the process continues, that you don't lose teeth, or get them mixed up - croc teeth are designed to come out fairly easily, and once the connective tissue in the jaw begins to break down, they will loosen up and drop out.

Let me know how it progresses Gordo, and I can help get a good end product.

Jamie

Cheers Jamie, we've been in touch with the darwin museum and thety have given us a pretty good guide on how to do it. They said it was best to get straight in to boning out the connective tissue. I think i was a little too excited to wait a couple days but man was it a hard job, i wish i did wait! This took me three hours with good quality knives. The skull was still in pretty good shape dispite having two bullet holes in it.

crappy pic, should get more up tomorrow if i'm lucky.

Who is doing all the shooting Gordo?

One of the T/O's did the majority but also some of the ringers from the station out here. Here's sopme pics of the locals cutting it up to be shared around.

Enjoy! Now i'm going home for a nice cold glass of... water.

 

[saximus]

Wow that's incredible!. Thanks for sharing the pics Gordo

 

[whyme]

You'll find the bottom of the skull [jawbone, etc] will come in two halves. Glueing works, but a good drillbit and some dowell glued in works a thousand times better in the long run. Back of the skull is a bit harder, but some good fishing line will hold it together! Good luck. P.S. Must be good knives to carve a croc up like that!!!!

 

[guzzo]

I know the rangers in Kakadu quite often shoot crocs with bird shot (not sure if lead or steel) in the tail if they are hanging around populated areas. In most cases it scares the heck out of em and they don't return....it is when they do they get shot for good. Good pics there.

 

[chase77]

Thanks for the thread guys. Its been a great read and very informative.

Chase.

 

[Braidotti]

Hey Waruikazi, I just seen on News.com that a 4m croc that was shot wasnt dead and was found again in the same billabong at Gunbalanya. Is this the same one that you said sunk to the bottom and hasnt been found.

I think it was in your other thread.

 

[waruikazi]

They are talking smack, that pilot wasn't even around when all the shooting took place. The whole school watched this one get shot, they fired three shots and i found two bullet holes in his head and recovered one slug. I know there have been atleast three large crocs shot since Tuesday, but the number is probably more like 5 (I saw one miss and Dion told me that he thinks the first shot he took missed but was a different animal to the second he shot and killed). The reason the other crocs haven't been recovered is because they were shot from the bank, not form a boat so they couldn't safely be pulled out before the current washed them out to god knows where.

Hey Waruikazi, I just seen on News.com that a 4m croc that was shot wasnt dead and was found again in the same billabong at Gunbalanya. Is this the same one that you said sunk to the bottom and hasnt been found.

I think it was in your other thread.

You'll find the bottom of the skull [jawbone, etc] will come in two halves. Glueing works, but a good drillbit and some dowell glued in works a thousand times better in the long run. Back of the skull is a bit harder, but some good fishing line will hold it together! Good luck. P.S. Must be good knives to carve a croc up like that!!!!

Apparently this one should be large enough to hold together as long as we are gentle but we did get advice to that if it broke in two. Would love some tips on how to reattach the large chunk that got blown off from the bullet wound.

They used to be sharp knives lol. I spent an hour trying to sharpen them up again last night and i just can't get the same edge back on them.

 

[Pythoninfinite]

Very interesting photos & story! Michael has a good point - the use of an alkali like KOH can speed things up, and make it a bit less stinky. KOH is used in solution to 'clear' tissue. and the skeleton, which is then stained with Alizarin Red, shows through in a transparent, but still intact body. It has the properties he suggests, sort of jellifies the muscle which can then be rinsed/washed away. Use a fairly weak solution, bit it is a strong alkali, so you need care when handling/mixing.

The last info I had on the NT Museum had Ian Archibald's son working there - still the case?

J

 

[waruikazi]

Very interesting photos & story! Michael has a good point - the use of an alkali like KOH can speed things up, and make it a bit less stinky. KOH is used in solution to 'clear' tissue. and the skeleton, which is then stained with Alizarin Red, shows through in a transparent, but still intact body. It has the properties he suggests, sort of jellifies the muscle which can then be rinsed/washed away. Use a fairly weak solution, bit it is a strong alkali, so you need care when handling/mixing.

The last info I had on the NT Museum had Ian Archibald's son working there - still the case?

J

He sure is. I met him late last year (i think) when i got to go and look in the types cabinet and the rest of the preserved collection. He's also a friend of our science teacher out here, he had us on the phone for a good half hour telling us what to do. It's great having people so keen to help out!

 

[Braidotti]

They are talking smack, that pilot wasn't even around when all the shooting took place. The whole school watched this one get shot, they fired three shots and i found two bullet holes in his head and recovered one slug. I know there have been atleast three large crocs shot since Tuesday, but the number is probably more like 5 (I saw one miss and Dion told me that he thinks the first shot he took missed but was a different animal to the second he shot and killed). The reason the other crocs haven't been recovered is because they were shot from the bank, not form a boat so they couldn't safely be pulled out before the current washed them out to god knows where.

Thanks for that.

 

[whyme]

Ha Ha. Throw out the knives and buy some new ones. Your pissin' in the wind tryin' to get another good edge!!! What was the large chunk that was blown off. Top or bottom, or near the jaw hinges. If its not going to be used as a demo, a good epoxy will work. If the kids are going to want to touch it, 3mm holes and skewers/dowells glued in for the tricky bits, or 6mm dowells for the heavier bits. Bit of fiddling around, but worth it in the end. Hope it helps!





Apparently this one should be large enough to hold together as long as we are gentle but we did get advice to that if it broke in two. Would love some tips on how to reattach the large chunk that got blown off from the bullet wound.

They used to be sharp knives lol. I spent an hour trying to sharpen them up again last night and i just can't get the same edge back on them.[/QUOTE]

 

[pythonmum]

Have you ever seen 'Inside Nature's Giants' when they dissected a croc? It was fascinating. If you get a chance at a fresh one, have a go. I would steer clear if it is a couple days old. Few people have the stomach for that kind of work. BTW - did you eat any of that good jaw meat you got off the skull?

 

[waruikazi]

Have you ever seen 'Inside Nature's Giants' when they dissected a croc? It was fascinating. If you get a chance at a fresh one, have a go. I would steer clear if it is a couple days old. Few people have the stomach for that kind of work. BTW - did you eat any of that good jaw meat you got off the skull?

I missed that episode, i saw the one with the whale, giraffe and everything else but i missed that croc one. I might see if i can download it. No i haven't eaten any of the meat, i kept a vertebrate for my dog but he wouldn't touch it... which made me think twice about eating it... but i still have a few kg in the fridge so it may happen yet.

Whyme it's a large chunk from the upper jaw hinge, basically from the ear hole down.

Got a few more pictures of when i was boning the head. They're a bit fuzzy because another teacher's 3 year old son was the photographer lol.

I'm really suprised that there has been no flaming lol. Last time i posted up pics dead natives being used as a food source the haters went wild!

 

[aussie-albino]

Great thread waruikazi, very interesting and good photo's. They sell farmed croc meat here I can't bring myself to eat it either.
cheers
Scott

 

[waruikazi]

Great thread waruikazi, very interesting and good photo's. They sell farmed croc meat here I can't bring myself to eat it either.
cheers
Scott

I've eaten farmed meat before, tastes just like chicken just a little tougher. Because these ones feed mainly on fish they would taste more like fish... or camp dogs lol. But my dog turning his nose up at it... really weirds me out. He even took the bone out of his bowl, put it outside and then went and finished the rest of his dinner.

But i would definately encourage people to eat farmed meat, it helps prop up the industry and helps to fund research. Delicious and for a good cause!

 

[saximus]

Yeah I reckon it tastes like fishy chicken. I didn't really like it.
Scree the flamers. It was a safety issue and at least it's all being put to use in some form or another

 

[waruikazi]

Yeah I reckon it tastes like fishy chicken. I didn't really like it.
Scree the flamers. It was a safety issue and at least it's all being put to use in some form or another

Yeah but i got myself all ready and wound up to take them on! And no one has . Well i guess there is a first time for everything, even common sense amongst APS members lol.

 

[-Katana-]

I'm really suprised that there has been no flaming lol. Last time i posted up pics dead natives being used as a food source the haters went wild!

Shhhhh!
Let sleeping trolls .umm.....sleep.
It's kinda like saying Beetle Juice three times.
*ducks and runs for cover*

 

[euphorion]

More pics Gordo!! That's awesome, will be a great specimen for the school Can't wait to the see the end result.