Odatria_14_NOV13 - Victorian Herpetological Society

“That makes the mathematics a lot more complicated andthe computations more complicated.”ROBOTIC SNAKESAs well as better understanding how snakes and otherlegless animals move through their environment, Albensays his findings could be applied to the field of robotics.“A lot of researchers are building robotic snakes, which areusually a bunch of linked segments where they control theangles between the links over time. These can be usefulfor getting robots into tight environments,” he says.“Understanding what kind of motions are optimal can helppeople design robots that work efficiently.”ABC NewsSeptember 2013Nz Kayaker Relieved To Have EscapedCrocA New Zealand kayaker prayed for his life as he was kepthostage on a remote Australian island by a giant crocodilehe believed would devour him at any moment.Ryan Blair had an amazing escape after becoming trappedon a remote island off the coast of Western Australiafor more than two weeks by the massive crocodile thatwouldn’t let him leave.The 37-year-old had been exploring the northern WA coastnear Kalumburu, which is between Derby and Kununurra.Having been left on the remote Governor Island, the Kiwirealised he didn’t have enough supplies and tried to paddlethe 4km back to the mainland.But he immediately caught the eye of the six-metresaltwater crocodile that’s lived in the area for years.Every time he tried to leave, the crocodile would make hispresence felt, leaving the adventurer fearing for his lifeand stranded for more than a fortnight.“He was about four metres away from me and I thought‘this is it,’” Mr Blair said.“It was so close, and if this croc wanted to take me it wouldnot have been an issue.“I was scared for my life - I was hard core praying for Godto save me.”On Saturday, local Don MacLeod spotted a light on theisland, and when he checked it out, the hatless, shirtlessand desperate visitor approached.“He was relieved and shocked, and thankful someone hadcome along because he was running out of options pretty45quickly,” Mr MacLeod told ABC radio.“He is a very, very lucky man.”Ryan’s passage to WA was not easy in itself.He travelled from Queensland to the Kimberley on a yachtwhose owner was then jailed in the Northern Territory,leaving Mr Blair stranded for two months.After hitching a lift with a solo yachtsman from the Territoryto WA, he was dropped on Governor Island with 160 litresof water, some flour and dry stores.But after realising he was unprepared for the Kimberleywilderness, three attempts to reach the mainland wasthwarted by the massive crocodile.Mr MacLeod said the story was incredible.“He said every time he got in his little kayak, which wasonly 2.5m long, this crocodile - who has lived there formany years and is a monster - has chased him,” MrMacLeod said.“He was desperate for water when I trotted up.“We gave him a cold beer, which was probably the wrongthing, and then he went to sleep about three-quarters ofthe way home.”Mr Blair flew out of Kalumburu to Kununurra on Monday,and said he had seen enough of Australia’s outback.“For the moment I can have a bit of a break from theadventuring days,” Mr Blair said.ABC NewsSeptember 2013Two Men Caught Smuggling Lizards AtPerth AirportAuthorities in Western Australian have stopped twoJapanese men from attempting to smuggle 30 lizards outof the country.The men were caught as they tried to fly out of the PerthInternational Airport after putting the lizards in their checkedbaggage.It is estimated the reptiles could fetch up to $130,000 onthe Asian black market.Rick Dawson from the Department of Parks and Wildlifesays the lizards were taken from all over the state.“We believe that a lot were taken around the metropolitanarea,” he said.“You can’t pick up Australian wildlife so if you see someonepicking it up then you should inform the department.”“They certainly got them from Rottnest Island because