Crocodile caught in creek where children were swimming

Veteran ranger Tom Nichols captured a crocodile from a creek where children were recently swimming. (HANDOUT/NORTHERN TERRITORY PARKS AND WILDLIFE)

Wildlife rangers in the Top End have caught their first crocodile of the year in a creek where children were swimming the day before.

The 2.7-metre female saltwater reptile was caught in a trap in a Darwin rural area on New Year's Day by the Northern Territory Parks and Wildlife croc unit.