A Danish backpacker who was bitten by a crocodile while trying to take a selfie with the dangerous reptile in Western Australia has admitted he was being “stupid”.

Johnny Bonde, 27, said he spotted a freshwater crocodile in Lake Kununurra yesterday and perched on a bank to take photographs of it.

"Next thing I know I'm sliding down the bank and then I just toppled over and landed straight on top of the croc. He got a pretty good grip on me and shook me around a bit," Bonde told Perth Now .

"There was just splashing and I could feel a bit of pain in my arm; it wasn't that bad though, I was more shocked than anything."

A video obtained by the West Australian showed Bonde holding his bloodied right arm above a sink. He was treated in hospital for deep cuts to his arm.

Bonde said he felt "stupid" and understood why the crocodile, which he estimated was about 2.5 metres long, bit him.

"It was the result of me being stupid," he said.

"I pretty much body slammed him. If somebody body slammed me at night, I would be angry too."

Australia is home to two crocodile species -- the freshwater and the saltwater.