French tourist bitten by a crocodile near Haew Suwat waterfall in Khao Yai

[Henryford]

Stupid is as stupid does.

[Briggsy]

7 minutes ago, Bill Miller said:

I am a bit surprised that you would have thought that. Not only are they native to Thailand but the one species is named for Thailand (Siam).
On the other hand they have been critically endangered since the mid twentieth century, and nearly extinct now in Thailand except on the farms.
 

The crocodiles on the farms are hybrids of Estuarine crocodiles and Siamese crocodiles. The Estuarine are bigger. The Siamese give better leather. The hybridisation was to achieve greater productivity in terms of skins for leather. Leather production being the reason for the farms in the first place.

 

Since crocodiles were absent from Khao Yai for decades and then suddenly reappeared without explanation, it is reasonable to suspect they were reintroduced. If so, where was the animal introduced from? If from a farm, it is very likely to be a hybrid.

The apparent lack of a viable breeding population also suggests reintroduction.

 

If anybody can source any scientific articles regarding this probable reintroduction, I would be interested.

 

 

[elgordo38]

7 hours ago, Thaiwrath said:

The fella at the top of the picture should really have kept his shirt on.

Tarzan coming to the rescue. Even the so called tame tigers at the Tiger farm make me nervous. Went there once and when they yawn you never know if its a lunch warm up maneuver.

[elgordo38]

I wonder what is running through the mind of the DNP officer in the forefront. hmm the things we must endure for the sake of tourist dollars. 

[realenglish1]

I think she mistook it for a Louis Vuitton  bag  God only knows its a french design  and she would have been very familiar with the bags in France

 

Someone forgot to tell her this bag has teeth

[Bill Miller]

5 minutes ago, Briggsy said:

The crocodiles on the farms are hybrids of Estuarine crocodiles and Siamese crocodiles. The Estuarine are bigger. The Siamese give better leather. The hybridisation was to achieve greater productivity in terms of skins for leather. Leather production being the reason for the farms in the first place.

 

Since crocodiles were absent from Khao Yai for decades and then suddenly reappeared without explanation, it is reasonable to suspect they were reintroduced. If so, where was the animal introduced from? If from a farm, it is very likely to be a hybrid.

The apparent lack of a viable breeding population also suggests reintroduction.

 

If anybody can source any scientific articles regarding this probable reintroduction, I would be interested.

 

 

From a TV post dated 2012. ..

Taken at Khao Yai.
Other posts in the same thread refer to sightings in 2009.
I would suggest it is equally likely that there is a small, long hidden breeding population somewhere in the 300 square kilometers of the park, as that some unknown entity has performed a sub rosa re-introduction. One cannot depend on sighting one of  the herds of wild elephant, yet they are there. It is even speculated that  "Although evidence of tiger presence has not been recorded recently, monitoring by Freeland Foundation in collaboration with Department of National Park rangers has discovered tigers (the Indochinese tiger subspecies) in other parts of eastern Thailand where they were previously thought to have been completely extirpated." ~ Wiki article about Khao Yai.
If elephants and (maybe) tigers can remain largely unobserved then I would surmise that a few smallish crocs could get by for a few years.

 

[Penicillin]

1 hour ago, spiritrace said:

I am amazed that we as a species have made it this far and continue to grow in numbers.

You mean the "French" ?

[dageurreotype]

People come here and believe the natural laws of the universe don't apply as soon as they've cleared customs. They drive insanely on motorbikes they've never ridden before and take 'selfies' right up alongside crocodiles, thinking they won't come to any harm as this is Disneyland. Oh wait .. 

Edited January 2, 2017 by dageurreotype

[jak2002003]

I read a while back that while there are hybrid crocs in the Thai croc farms...but a good percentage are still   100 percent pure Siamese Crocodiles.  They have a couple of crocs  at a temple zoo near me (stuck in stinking filthy concrete pits).  They are Siamese Crocks for sure.  Someone should get a scientific grant and go around the rural remote village temples and see how many of these crocs are about.. and then release them into suitable places.

 

There are also people keeping 'pet' crocodiles too.. although this is illegal.  A guy near me also has 2 large crocs he keeps in a concrete pit in his back garden. 

 

There have never been any unprovoked attacks on humans from this species.  It feeds mostly of fish, turtles, frogs and other small prey.

 

This croc would not have hunted and attacked this woman.  The woman got bitten because she was provoking it and getting into its personal space. 

 

There is a project reintroducing the Siamese Crocodile in Lao... which is having some success with them now breeding in the wild again.

 

 

 

 

[elgordo38]

33 minutes ago, Briggsy said:

The crocodiles on the farms are hybrids of Estuarine crocodiles and Siamese crocodiles. The Estuarine are bigger. The Siamese give better leather. The hybridisation was to achieve greater productivity in terms of skins for leather. Leather production being the reason for the farms in the first place.

 

Since crocodiles were absent from Khao Yai for decades and then suddenly reappeared without explanation, it is reasonable to suspect they were reintroduced. If so, where was the animal introduced from? If from a farm, it is very likely to be a hybrid.

The apparent lack of a viable breeding population also suggests reintroduction.

 

If anybody can source any scientific articles regarding this probable reintroduction, I would be interested.

 

 

Quite interesting kind of tops up my knowledge on crocodiles. As we want to make handbags out of them I can now understand why they want to bite people. Self preservation. Trying to picture a handbag made out of humans but can only come up with a tobacco pouch.  

[JAG]

4 hours ago, Sphere said:

 

They paid 400 baht to get in....now they want value for money, or they aren't going back.

 

If it had a Thai Driving Licence (don't laugh - look at half of the people driving around with one) then it would only have had to pay 100 baht.

Maybe that was why it was a tad irritated?

 

[Wake Up]

The croc was just taking his own selfie.          

 

 

But she got away. 

[JAG]

4 hours ago, boomerangutang said:

Well, now she can join the short list of people who have been bitten by crocs and lived to tell the tale. 

 

Near Chiang Rai, year ago, I bought a bunch of bananas to feed to a group of about 7 elephants, individually tethered by chain on one leg each.  I was strolling through the herd, giving 2 bananas to each.  After a few hand-outs, I was broadsided from the back.  A large female knocked me down to the ground with her trunk.  She wanted all the bananas for herself.   I was lucky she didn't follow up with a crushing foot.   

 

 

Edited January 2, 2017 by JAG

[puukao]

The Croc was American.  And that lady was smoking 100 packs a day!!!!

 

Let's spam her facebook, friends, work and say how dumb she is!!!!!

 

Oh, you mean we will then have to disclose who we really are?????

 

Oh, in that case, "Get better.  Sorry for your pain.  I wish you a speedy recovery.  God bless.  Take care.  Hope you recover well.  Best wishes.  Take care."

 

LOL

[boomerangutang]

Good thing it wasn't a selfie with a cobra, scorpion or centipede.

[mikiea]

9 hours ago, Shot said:

Can't fix stupid

now if we can just get the phones to explode after the 3rd selfi.....................

[gemguy]

1 hour ago, elgordo38 said:

Tarzan coming to the rescue. Even the so called tame tigers at the Tiger farm make me nervous. Went there once and when they yawn you never know if its a lunch warm up maneuver.

That reminds me

Back in my home country in 1981, a friend of mine had purchased a brand new camera and loaded with features and wanted to go to the public zoo and take photos of the animals.

After entering through the admission gates, the first animal display was the Tiger cage where a Bengal Tiger family was on display.

There was already about 20 people, including adults and children standing near to the fenced off enclosure looking over at the far corner of the cage where the Tiger cubs and Female Tiger were resting.

The male Tiger was just beginning to restlessly and leisurely walk along the well-worn pathway the tigers had created on the inside perimeter of the fence enclosure.

Everyone was excited that the male Tiger was coming near to them while my friend with the camera positioned himself as close as allowable to the perimeter fence that was equivalent to about 8 feet way by way of a metal barrier safely separating the public from the perimeter fence.

As the male Tiger came closer to everyone I was thinking about male cats and what they often do while I began to tell my friend with the camera that you should stand back, same as I was…. because…..and before I could finish explaining to my friend he was right there amongst the rest of the people and leaning in close with his camera to get a close up and personal photo of the male Tiger, who walked right up and in the front center of the crowd and then stopped and quickly turned around with its back side to the crowd and quickly lifted up its tail and proceeded to forcefully spray everyone with a copious amount of male cat scent fluid while everyone, including my friend, was sprayed with the cat scent fluid.

A surprisingly large amount of fluid that effectively sprayed everyone (except me)  while people reeled back and children cried out saying: “Eeeeww…Mommyyyyyyy…. what is it”……..and adults said “<deleted>” ..lol ……while my friend had received a good face full of the fluid and his camera was dripping with the whitish, slightly yellowish fluid having a distinct and unpleasant odor.

I had suddenly realised,  that male Tiger was going to do exactly what it did do as a form of revenge and frustration for being caged up all those years while I was telling my friend how I was trying to forewarn him about what I was certain was going to happen….but too late and at the last seconds.

That male Tiger had this look of satisfaction on its face that made me chuckle knowing it was not the first time that male Tiger had exacted its only form of frustrated revenge on all the never ending parade of gawking humans.

Cheers

[gomangosteen]

Surprise!! Crocodile...

 

 

And actual scene of the incident 

[elgordo38]

2 minutes ago, gemguy said:

I had suddenly realised,  that male Tiger was going to do exactly what it did do as a form of revenge and frustration for being caged up all those years

Bravo tiger there have been times in my life when I felt like doing the same thing. They are definitely not dumb animals. 

[lostinisaan]

Both approached the crocodile trying to “selfie” themselves with the beast. But the wife slipped as she tried to stand up, hence, prompting the crocodile to become excited and bite her on left leg.

 

 The beast was hunting frogs at that time. 

[NextStationBangkok]

When we like to meet the crocodile, instead crocodiles likes the meat!

 

They thought the Crocodile selfie show is as easy as eating a croissant.

 

couple.....

[lostinisaan]

1 minute ago, NextStationBangkok said:

When we like to meet the crocodile, instead crocodiles likes the meat!

 

They thought the Crocodile selfie show is as easy as eating a croissant.

 

couple.....

 

 

The legless frogs fought back........

[toenail]

French cuisine is to be a gastronomical delight- not with this crocodile. He prefers the spicy. Maybe the lady could not read English or Thai??? (seriously, I am thankful  there was a rescue squad to assist-could have been worse).

[gomangosteen]

French-style croc greets visitors at the entrance to Chanson Crocodile Farm, Chanthaburi

 

[currynamnam]

Tried froglegs, found them to be culinary overrated...I guess the croc agrees, since it did not finish the meal 

[allan michaud]

9 hours ago, cnjoew said:

sorry for my ignorance but as far as I know crocodiles aren't native to Thailand, so what are they doing in Khao Yai?

The freshwater Siamese Crocodile, up to 4 meters. However they are incredibly rare so I am very suspicious of this story. I can only assume the Thai's released some into lakes in the area, as have the Vietnamese in efforts to get them back in the wild. Thailand also has Saltwater crocs by the way, they are found from the Indian ocean to Australia.

[gemguy]

2 minutes ago, allan michaud said:

The freshwater Siamese Crocodile, up to 4 meters. However they are incredibly rare so I am very suspicious of this story. I can only assume the Thai's released some into lakes in the area, as have the Vietnamese in efforts to get them back in the wild. Thailand also has Saltwater crocs by the way, they are found from the Indian ocean to Australia.

There are loads of them in crocodile farms...lol

But yes......not that many of them out in the wild so much throughout Thailand the way there used to be.

However, Being the hardy, billion year old survivors that they are known to be I believe all the existing variations of crocodiles can be relocated and they will find the means to survive ...including, making a meal out of you and I..... if need be to survive.

Cheers

[Bill Miller]

There has been a pilot program to re-introduce the Siamese croc in  Pang Sida National Park, which is part of the same forest system in which Khao Yai is located, the Dong Phayayen-Khao Yai Forest Complex .
I am not sure of the distance between Pang Sida NP and Khao Yai NP, but I have seen reference to one chipped Siamese croc moving 25 klicks and back again. 

 A good article on the critter which has info on the re-introduction program:
Siamese Crocodile Crocodylus siamensis - iucncs



 

[hotchilli]

On holiday in Thailand, brains left behind in Paris

[tandor]

7 hours ago, akirasan said:

I hope the crocodile is ok

 

 

..fancy having a French entree thrust upon you...must have been a marrowing experience for Le Croc.