A British fisherman has died after being bitten by a sea snake while working on a trawler off the northern Australian coast.
The 23-year-old, who has not yet been identified, was pulling in a net in a remote part of the Northern Territory coast.
He died at the scene within hours before a rescue helicopter could reach him, officials said.
Sea snakes are highly venomous but are not aggressive, so humans are rarely bitten by them in Australian waters.
It is not yet known which species of sea snake was involved.
They can grow to between 120cm and 150cm but can get as long as three metres.
They tend to be found in tropical and sub-tropical waters through south-east Asia, the western Pacific and northern Australia.
Snake expert Dr Mick Guinea, from Charles Darwin University in the Northern Territory, said: ‘This is the first time a trawlerman has been fatally bitten by a sea snake in Australia. Read more