“Animals are not surfboards, and we should no more be applauding a person who “surfs” on a crocodile than we should applaud jockeys who whip horses or marine park trainers who ride on dolphins’ fins.”

An Australian tradie has caused a stir after an image that appeared to show him surfing on top of a giant crocodile with a rope around the animal’s snout surfaced online.

The picture captioned the “Most Aussie photo I have” was published on Reddit on 16 May.

It showed a barefoot man wearing a high-vis jacket and standing on top of a crocodile. He was seen holding one end of a rope while the other was tied to the crocodile’s jaw. The photo also showed the man’s friends watching on from a small tinnie beside him.

Although the image was removed from the site within 24 hours, it nonetheless went viral with screenshots being saved from Reddit and posted on several other social media platforms.

Animal abuse

The insane stunt also attracted numerous comments on the original platform.

“This is why I want girls. I feel like boys are harder to keep alive,” a Reddit user wrote.

“Mate there are way easier ways to off yourself if you have a death wish, just saying,” another commented.

“Kinda seems like animal abuse to me. Doesn’t matter if it’s a crocodile,” a third added.

‘We should be ashamed’

The bizarre photo was heavily criticized by vegan charity PETA, which released a statement saying: “If this stunt is the ‘most Aussie thing ever’, we should be ashamed.”

Spokeswoman Emily Rice said: “Animals are not surfboards, and we should no more be applauding a person who “surfs” on a crocodile than we should applaud jockeys who whip horses or marine park trainers who ride on dolphins’ fins.”

She added: “Already in Australia, crocodiles are exploited as tourist spectacles, their nests are raided for eggs so that their babies can be raised on filthy factory farms, and they’re mercilessly slaughtered so that foreign fashion houses can turn their skins into handbags.

“Native wildlife habitats are already under threat, thanks to human lust for animal flesh and the dire environmental effects of animal agriculture.

“The last thing Australian animals need is also to be stood on by grown men looking for attention.”

Ban exotic skins

The photo comes less than a month after PETA called on luxury fashion house Hermès to ban exotic skins from its collections.

Earlier this month, Hermès allegedly ‘refused’ to answer the vegan charity’s questions about an exotic skins ban during its annual shareholders’ meeting.

Tracy Reiman, Executive Vice President of PETA said: “Savvy, eco-minded customers know what they want, and that’s mock croc and fake snake, not the skin of someone who was tortured.

“PETA urges Hermès to embrace innovative, fashion-forward materials, as other designers are—because a killer look doesn’t need to kill animals.”

• Read: Swan found in Lincoln with sock pulled over its head in ‘mindless prank’

Share this story: Photo of Aussie man surfing on crocodile down river sparks outrage.