Crocodiles like warm water...or do they?

There can often be danger associated with getting photos and you don't have to be in a war zone. Cape York is notorious crocodile territory. They're everywhere up here and it's a pretty brave (or stupid!) photographer who would even think about getting in the water.

OK, so I've been known to throw common sense out the window every so often in the search for a great shot. And when an aboriginal elder of the Wik tribe tells you he's going to go out and spear a stingray...well who am I to say no?

So there I was standing next to him with a wide-angle lens on so as I could really show the environment we were in. And the whole scene was so amazing and primordial and very photogenic. When I got back to shore I asked about the chances of being chomped on (probably would have been a good idea to ask beforehand!)

One of the local girls said to me, "You know if there's crocodiles near when the water's warm. If the water's cold there's no crocs". I just assumed she meant that crocodiles didn't like cold water. "No", she corrected me," if you're standing in the water and it suddenly goes warm it means that crocodile take a piss." And she broke into hysterical laughter. Thoughts of being so close to a giant dinosaur that I could feel it weeing on my leg made my knees tremble.

Oh well, at least I got the shot without getting eaten. :)

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