A survival expert suggests that a young boy who disappeared from his family’s large sheep station five days ago might still be alive due to his farm upbringing.

The search is ongoing for four-year-old August Lamont, known as Gus, last spotted playing in sand near his remote home, about 40km south of Yunta in South Australia’s Mid North, around 5pm on Saturday.

Authorities have brought in a specialized tracker and Australian Defence personnel after a child’s footprint was found 500m from the homestead, reigniting hopes.

Michael Atkinson, a survivalist and runner-up on Alone Australia’s first season, is confident Gus is still alive and encourages emergency crews to keep looking until he is located.

The ex-ADF pilot noted that having been raised on the property, Gus is likely at ease in the environment, emphasizing that children from farms tend to be tougher.

‘The child’s upbringing is crucial, and being young can actually be beneficial because you might not grasp the danger,’ Atkinson shared with the Adelaide Advertiser.

Gus was last seen wearing a grey broad-brimmed hat, blue long-sleeved shirt with a Minion picture from the film Despicable Me on the front, light grey pants, and boots.

This would have helped protect him from the elements in recent days, according to Atkinson.

‘Having a hat is important, as it keeps your head warm and, if you look at the time of year, it is probably the best time of year as it’s not too hot or cold,’ Atkinson said.

He said Gus would be able to survive without water at this time of year, adding that many have gone much longer.

‘Robert Bogucki went 12 days with no water in Broome, so dehydration-wise he (Gus) wouldn’t be doing it at a fast rate compared to other times of year,’ he said.

Atkinson urged authorities to continue aerial patrols every night.

‘He could be hiding under a bush not seen from one angle, but he could be captured from another,’ he said. 

A footprint was discovered 500m from the property’s homestead on Wednesday, which police positively identified as being from a child.

‘It’s a very similar boot pattern to what Gus was wearing when he went missing,’ Superintendent Mark Syrus said.

A skilled tracker was brought in to follow the footprint trail, which Atkinson said would be invaluable to the search.

Almost 50 Australian defence personnel will arrive on Thursday morning to join the search.

‘Gus has been gone for now over six days, so we still hold out hope we’re going to find him,’ Supt Syrus told Sunrise on Thursday.

Police are still working on the theory that Gus likely wandered off.

They do not believe Gus has been taken, as the only people who would travel on the nearby road are station owners.

‘The property is very isolated; you have to go through six gates to actually get to the station,’ Supt Syrus said.

‘We’re focusing our efforts that he’s wandered off from the front yard.’

The specialist tracker spent all day Wednesday scouring for more footprints.

‘He covered a lot of ground but, unfortunately, just from that one track, he couldn’t find any indication of any other tracks in the area, which he said was unusual,’ Supt Syrus said.

Police continue to search a 3km radius from Gus’s last known whereabouts.

‘Yesterday afternoon, we had another review of our search and we’ve actually gone back to the property and searched it now for the third time, just in case he’s secreted or hiding somewhere around the property,’ Supt Syrus said.

‘Unfortunately nothing turned up. 

‘So today, we’re continuing the search around the area and hopefully we’ll find a clue, a hat or something that might give us an idea of which direction he travelled in.’

South Australia Police have not released photos of Gus, as per his family’s wishes.

Anyone with information that may assist police is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.