Hunter survives six days in Australian outback by eating ants

He had been on a hunting trip with his brother and it is understood he went off on his own to follow a camel.

Recreational hunter, Reg Foggerdy, 62, was found delirious and seriously dehydrated by a police search party on Tuesday morning having survived in the remote bush in the northern Goldfields region.

A police spokesman said Mr Foggerdy had spent the last two days sitting under a tree eating black ants.

Supt Greatwood also praised Mr Foggerdy’s “fantastic” skills, saying that while more details of how he coped were likely to emerge, “most people would not have survived”.

The brothers had been driving back to their camp 170 kilometres (110 miles) east of the nearest town, Laverton, after a day’s hunting when Foggedy went missing, wearing only a T-shirt, shorts, a cap and flip flops.

The sister of missing Laverton man Reginald Foggerdy, who was found alive on Tuesday morning after being lost in the outback for almost a week, said medical teams could not give assurances on his state of health.

It’s been six long days so it’s a big miracle, ‘ she said.

Foggerdy was airlifted by the Royal Flying Doctor Service to the Kalgoorlie Hospital. “He is an experienced bushman”, Ms Ogden said.

‘He had no water whatsoever for six days.

He is said to be suffering dehydration and was delusional when found.

Police followed the tracks until they found Foggerdy leaning against a tree in extremely poor condition. She said the past week had been terrible for the family.

Searchers had a welcome breakthrough yesterday when fresh tracks were spotted.

“He has a lot of experience in the bush and it’s all paid off”.

A team from the Perth-based Regional Operations Group was sent to Kalgoorlie to provide support for local officers.

“They must have been very close to him (when Monday’s search finished)”, she said.

Mr Foggerdy now lives in Perth and usually cares for his school-aged son while his wife works.

‘[He had] fantastic survival skills’.

Mr Foggerdy, who frequented the area in the past, carried a mud map of lands and had pointed out the access road to Ray and his wife before the brothers set off.