Sri Lankan wildlife department officials rescued one of the largest crocodiles ever seen on the island after it got stuck in a canal while looking for food.

The reptile found in the southern city of Matara was believed to weigh close to a ton and measured 17 feet long, local media reported.

‘We found a similar size crocodile four, five months back in the Polathumodrara river. This is the maximum these type of crocodiles grow,’ said environmentalist Uppala Jayatissa.

The enormous crocodile, one of the biggest ever seen in Sri Lanka, got stuck in a flooded canal while hunting for food. It was rescued, unharmed, by locals using a JCB digger and a tractor

Brave rescuers grabbed the croc’s front legs as it was tied up and pulled on to a tractor trailer.

The reptile was found on Monday stuck in a canal leading to the Nilawala River which flows across the district.

It was reported that the crocodile was searching for food after water levels rose due to heavy rain.

It was so huge that it made an undignified exit with its tail hanging off the back of a trailer

‘With the help of the villagers and the police we achieved what we wanted which was to send the crocodile back to where he came from without hurting him in any way,’ said wildlife department official, Ravindra Kumar.

‘The reptile was too big to move out of here on its own.’

The giant reptile was pushed back into the river with the help of a JCB digger and a tractor with a trailer.