A rampaging king cobra was caught after attacking a python during a reptile battle in a pond.

Concerned locals heard the two deadly snakes splashing around in the water in Chonburi, eastern Thailand, on June 5.

Onlooker Surapong Chomphupruek, 59, called the emergency services to separate them. They arrived with catching gear and dragged away the king cobra, which had overpowered its opponent.

The 10ft python was tangled up in a fishing net attached to the banks of the pond while the cobra was lurking in the surrounding water.

Rescue workers caught both snakes and released them back into the wild, far from homes.

Surapong, a farmer, said he was frightened when he saw two gigantic reptiles in his back yard.

He said: "I found a wild cobra trying to kill a python that struggled to move out from the net. I knew I could not help the snake so I called for help."