US influencer sparks fury after travelling to Australia to wrestle crocodiles ‘for likes’
A US influencer is under investigation after posting videos of himself trapping wild crocodiles.
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Mike Holston posted two videos for his followers showing him wrestling a freshwater crocodile and manhandling a saltwater crocodile in Queensland.
He claims to have made the videos for ‘educational purposes’ but officials have said his actions are ‘extremely dangerous and illegal’ and can attract huge fines of up to £18,300.
Mr Holston goes under the name ‘The Real Tarzan’ on social media.
In the clip where he wrestles a freshwater crocodile, he says “this is what dreams are made of.”
In another video he captures a young saltwater crocodile, one of the planet’s deadliest creatures that can grow up to 20ft in length and have the strongest bite of any living animal.
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In this clip he holds the animal by the neck and shows it to the camera before releasing it.
A spokesperson for Queensland's environment department said: “et us be clear: people should not attempt to capture freshwater or saltwater crocodiles in Queensland, unless they are trained and licensed to do so.”
Mr Holston defended his actions in the comments under one of the videos: "The croc was released after a few up-close looks and photos where [sic] taken.
"I don't encourage anyone to try to recreate or re-enact [sic] these videos!"
Months ago another US influencer was condemned for posting a video of her taking a baby wombat from beside a road while laughing and running away from its mother.
She left the country soon after the controversy emerged.
The father of Australia’s famous crocodile hunter Steve Irwin called him a ‘d***head’, saying: ““People visiting our country need to respect our wildlife, or they need to be booted out the door.
“This isn’t a Steve Irwin issue,” Bob Irwin said. “This is about an individual interfering with protected fauna.”
He said comparing Mr Holston’s behaviour to his son’s “really gets under (his) skin”.
“You can’t even put them in the same sentence. In this video the crocodile is clearly under extreme stress – it’s disgusting.
“Anyone who actually knows how to handle crocodiles knows they don’t respond well to capture. It’s a specialised skill to do it without causing dangerous stress and lactic acid build-up.
“Everything Steve did, from the time he was a little kid, was to respect wildlife and share that message in a way that would give others a healthier respect for animals.”