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Could a child really just 'disappear'? It has been a constant question since four-year-old Cleo Smith vanished from her tent on a camping trip 11 days ago.

For some, the concept is too hard to believe. 

But the reality is Australia has been haunted by the disappearance of children for decades. 

Sometimes it takes detectives years to crack the case. In a handful of tragic cases, they never do.

Here Daily Mail Australia takes a look at the most baffling cases. 

In the 11 days since little Cleo Smith disappeared from her tent on a camping trip, one question has been on the lips of armchair detectives and concerned strangers following along from home: Could a child really just 'disappear'?

William Tyrell, age 3

Perhaps the most famous child disappearances in recent memory, William Tyrrell vanished from his foster grandmother's home in Kendall, NSW on September 12, 2014.

The little boy in the Spiderman suit was playing with his sisters and out of sight for no more than five minutes.

Detectives poured an enormous amount of resources into finding him, but his disappearance remains a mystery. 

A coronial inquest is underway, hopeful of giving his loved ones and closure relating to his disappearance.

Perhaps the most famous child disappearances in recent memory, William Tyrrell vanished from his foster grandmother's home in Kendall, NSW on September 12, 2014

Craig Ewen Taylor, age 9 

Another case with eerie similarities to missing Cleo is that of Craig Ewen Taylor, who disappeared while on a family holiday visiting his grandparents in 1993.

Craig, who was adopted by his aunt and uncle, was holidaying in Coningham, Tasmania, when he disappeared from his family shack.

There were initial reports he may have borrowed a kayak and drowned while out on the water, but other witnesses suggested he was abducted.

No trace of Craig was ever found.  

Another case with eerie similarities to missing Cleo is that of Craig Ewen Taylor, who disappeared while on a family holiday visiting his grandparents in 1993

The Beaumont Children, Ages 9,7 & 4 

Jane, Arnna and Grant Beaumont have been missing since Australia Day 1966.

The trio spent the day at Glenelg Beach near Adelaide in South Australia and were due to return home by bus at 2pm. By 7.30pm, their parents were concerned for their safety and alerted police.

A major investigation followed in which detectives learned the children were seen at the beach with a tall blond man, and later at a shop buying food. Their parents hadn't given them the money. 

New leads and clues are regularly reported on, but there has not been any true development in the case. 

A $1 million reward for any credible information that leads to cracking the case was offered in 2018, and still stands.

Jane, Arnna and Grant Beaumont have been missing since Australia Day 1966

Joanne Ratcliff, age 11 and Kirstie Gordon, age 4  

Joanne and Kirstie disappeared from Adelaide Oval on August 25, 1973. The older of the girls had been tasked with taking Kirstie to the bathroom.

After 15 minutes, the girls' families grew concerned and began searching the field, but the girls were nowhere to be found.

A witness claims he saw the girls leaving the oval with a man, and four other people reported seeing them with the same person over the next 90 minutes.

Joanne appeared distressed in the sightings, police later revealed. 

Detectives later raised concerns that it was the same man seen with the Beaumont children, but this has never been confirmed.

The girls were last seen three kilometres from the oval.  

Joanne (left) and Kirstie (right) disappeared from Adelaide Oval on August 25, 1973. The older of the girls had been tasked with taking Kirstie to the bathroom

Eloise Worledge, age 8

When Eloise Worledge was reported missing, it sparked the biggest search ever seen in Victoria up until that point.

She was last seen on the night of January 12, 1976 at her home in Beaumaris, and was likely abducted.

Police believe she was lured from her bedroom by somebody she knew and felt comfortable with. 

Despite building a profile and determining what they believe likely happened, Eloise was never found. 

When Eloise Worledge was reported missing, it sparked the biggest search ever seen in Victoria up until that point

Patrick 'Paddy' Hildebrand, age 9 

Nine-year-old Patrick Hildebrand seemingly vanished into thin air while hiking with his family in Lilly Pilly Gully, Victoria.

It was 1987 and he was a keen bushwalker. Detectives understand he ran ahead of his family, and was never seen again.

It defies belief that little Paddy could've disappeared in such a short amount of time, particularly with all the people in the area searching for him.

Nine-year-old Patrick Hildebrand seemingly vanished into thin air while hiking with his family in Lilly Pilly Gully, Victoria

Cheryl Grimmer, age 3

Cheryl was kidnapped from Fairy Meadow Beach in Wollongong on January 12, 1970, during a day out with her brothers.

She was in a shower block at the beach when witnesses claim a man took her and ran off. 

Her body has never been found, but she is presumed dead.

A suspect, who was never named, was arrested in March 2017 in connection to Cheryl's disappearance. 

It was revealed he'd confessed to the crime at the time, providing key details about the incident that the public wasn't privy to. But the statement was dismissed due to other inconsistencies. He would've been 15 at the time Cheryl was taken.

He pleaded not guilty and, in May 2019, the judge ruled a key piece of evidence was inadmissible and all charges were dropped. 

Cheryl was kidnapped from Fairy Meadow Beach in Wollongong on January 12, 1970, during a day out with her brothers 

Quanne Diec, age 12 

Like Cheryl Grimmer, police officially consider Quanne Diec deceased.

They have never found the 12-year-old's body, and nobody has been convicted in relation to her disappearance, but there is significant reason to believe she was murdered. 

NSW Deputy State Coroner Magistrate Derek Lee ruled Quanne died on or after the day she went missing in July 1998.

'It is most likely that Quanne went missing, and later died in suspicious circumstances. The manner of death is therefore homicide,' he found at her inquest.

The 12-year-old vanished on her way to school after leaving her Granville home in Sydney's west to walk to the train station.

She was not reported missing for 10 hours, as her parents assumed she was at school while teachers assumed she had taken the day off.  

The 12-year-old vanished on her way to school after leaving her Granville home in Sydney's west to walk to the train station

Rahma el-Dennaoui, age 1

Rahma disappeared from the bedroom she shared with her two older siblings on  November 10 2005.

NSW Police have released a $250,000 reward for any information relating to her disappearance, but there are very few leads.

There was at least one kilometre between Rahma's home and bushland - too far for the child to have wandered, some say.

Police discovered the fly screen covering the window above her bed was torn, but there are theories that it was cut.

Rahma's three-year-old sister initially told police the 19-month-old was taken by someone who didn't have any hands.   

Rahma went missing from her home in Sydney's south-west on November 10, 2005

Cleo Smith, age 4  

Cleo joins a tragic list of young children who have seemingly disappeared without a trace in Australia.

She was last seen inside the tent she shared with her mum, stepdad and baby sister Isla about 1.30am on Saturday morning at the Blowholes campsite, north of Carnarvon in Western Australia.

The four-year-old had asked her mum for a sip of water and returned to bed. When the family woke at about 6am, both Cleo and her sleeping bag were gone.

Detectives fear she was abducted and have offered a $1million reward for information leading to a conviction or her safe return.

Cleo joins a tragic list of young children who have seemingly disappeared without a trace in Australia

Top cop in Madeleine McCann case reveals the 'real complication' in Cleo Smith's disappearance

A top detective who investigated the abduction of British toddler Madeleine McCann has weighed in on the eerily similar disappearance of Cleo Smith.

While there are 'grave fears' she was snatched, investigators are not ruling out the possibility she wandered off alone, with a massive land, sea and air search across the area entering its sixth day on Thursday as homicide detectives and missing persons specialists continue to scour the scene.

But UK cop Dr Graham Hill, who flew to Portugal to help in the desperate hunt for three-year-old Madeleine back in 2007, said there is one 'real complication' which suggests Cleo did not just wander off - the fact that her red and grey adult-sized sleeping bag is also missing. 

'I would say it's a remote chance that she's got up, wandered off and taken her sleeping bag with her. I think that's highly unlikely because there'd be some disturbance. You'd see where she dragged the sleeping bag and how far is a four- year-old child going to get in the dark?' he told the West Australian.

The search for Cleo Smith (pictured) is now in its sixth day, with police not ruling out any scenarios - but also not identifying any potential suspects 

The disturbing worst-case scenario is backed up by a worrying new development revealed by police on Wednesday night.

WA Police Inspector Jon Munday said little Cleo was too short to reach the zipper of the tent entrance, which was found hanging open by her mother at 6.30am.

He said the height of the zip opening on the tent was a major piece of evidence that could point to the possibility Cleo has been deliberately taken from the tent while her parents slept. 

'The positioning of that zipper for the flap is one of the circumstances which has caused us to have grave concerns for Cleo's safety,' he said. 

'There are circumstances around her disappearance that make it very concerning ... like the fact that the zipper was allegedly up so high (and) the sleeping bag is missing.'

Madeleine McCann (pictured) went missing in Portugal during a family holiday in 2007, with a child abduction expert who flew to Praia da Luz to help saying Cleo's disappearance had 'real complications' because of her missing sleeping bag 

Dr Hill – then a Surrey detective superintendent seconded to the UK’s new Child Exploitation and Online Protection centre – lent expert help to the hunt for Madeleine back in 2007.

An expert in the abduction and murder of children by sexual predators, he told her father Gerry that if Madeleine had been abducted - she would likely be dead.

In the majority of cases where a child is taken by a stranger, they are usually killed within three to six hours, with Dr Hill admitting 'the statistics don't lie'. 

Other campers claim they heard the sound of a car speeding off around 3am, with police revealing up to 20 sex offenders live near the campsite where Cleo was last seen five days ago.

Investigators have disclosed that while there are currently no concrete suspects for Cleo's disappearance, there are 'groups they are interested in'. 

Dr Hill said it's vital for investigators to know who was near the campsite that evening - as a potential abductor would have noticed Cleo and decided to pounce.

'When people abduct children, they have to see them in the first place. They have to know that they exist.  So if that little girl turned up at the campsite late last Friday. Was she running around whilst they put the tent up?' he said.

'Offenders only abduct children they know exist. They don't wander around people's tents at night in the hope they're going to bump into a little child.'

The adult-sized sleeping bag Cleo was sleeping in has also disappeared, police confirmed

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