This is the moment a farm owner discovers ten crocodiles hiding in a secret den beneath concrete in China, seemingly attempting to avoid being made into handbags.

Footage shows the worker using sledgehammers to break through the surface cover at a reservoir in Haikou, Hainan, on September 8.

The video reveals the man kicking and poking the reptile to get them to move into the water.

In contrast to the nationally protected Chinese alligator, which is native to the country, crocodile farming is widely practiced across China, and the animals raised for their meat and leather are not subject to the same protections.

Being reptiles, crocodiles and alligators struggle to regulate their body temperature when out of the water and in direct sunlight. They occasionally dig shallow dens or occupy existing hollows for shelter.

The ten crocs were successfully evicted from their hiding place under the concrete and chased back into the water.