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A saltwater crocodile has been destroyed after a four-month operation to trap and remove it from Lake Kununurra in Western Australia's Kimberley region.

Staff from the Western Australian Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW) had been trying to trap the reptile since it was first spotted in the popular recreational lake in July.

DPaW Officer Matt Byers said the 3.03-metre crocodile was considered a threat as the lake is popular with swimmers, water-skiers and boaters, telling the ABC "it's certainly of a size that's deemed a threat to any person, whether it be a child or an adult, in particular if you're in the water.

"A three-metre animal is a deadly animal."

Byers said the decision to shoot the crocodile was made after it was spotted about one kilometre downstream of the Crossing Falls boat ramp on Tuesday last week (4th November).

He said destroying it was the last resort, adding "it was quite tedious, we've been doing ongoing trapping for the four months and conducting a lot of daytime and night-time monitoring.

"There was no indication that it was likely to go into a trap.

"It was the last report to destroy it and that was the decision we made at the time, just (because of) how difficult it was to try and trap and remove."

Byers said the crocodile was destroyed as humanely as possible with a firearm

"As a policy we dispatch as quickly as we can and in this instance I've taken a number of shots to ensure that it was quick and humane."

Byers concluded that the DPaW was not aware of any other crocodiles in the area but sightings should be reported immediately, stating "if you think you have seen a saltwater crocodile, please attempt to take a photograph from a safe distance and advise your local Parks and Wildlife office immediately."

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