His days might be numbered without their help, but the wily "boss" crocodile of the Indonesian city of Palu has eluded a crack Australian capture team after 10 days trying to free him from an unwanted rubber 'necklace'.

Key points: Australian star of Outback Wrangler Matt Wright answered a call in January to rescue the crocodile in Palu

Australian star of Outback Wrangler Matt Wright answered a call in January to rescue the crocodile in Palu There are fears for the crocodile's long-term health due to a tyre stuck around its neck

There are fears for the crocodile's long-term health due to a tyre stuck around its neck Many animal hunters also tried to capture the animal due to a reward being offered but that has since been revoked

Croc wrangler and wildlife television presenter Matt Wright has returned to his Northern Territory home base, admitting the saltwater monster "definitely is one of the most difficult crocodiles I've had to catch in my career" but vowing "we have not given up" on the animal.

The Australian star of Nat Geo show Outback Wrangler and his mate Chris Wilson answered a call in late January from local authorities in central Sulawesi fretting over the fate of the 4-metre reptile with a motor scooter tyre jammed around its neck for the past 3-5 years.

Putting on weight and approaching full maturity, officials fear the tyre will slowly strangle the crocodile to death and want it removed this year before it does.

Mr Wright described the animal as the "big boss" crocodile of the Palu River, "smart, well fed" and "not going anywhere."

"He's happy, he's fat, he's healthy, he's got a big food source. But it is vital that at some stage this year we do catch him at that time and every effort is being put into that," he said.

A committed team of locals had formed to lead the capture and rescue operation controlled by the Central Sulawesi Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA), Indonesia's Environment and Forestry Ministry, as well Mr Wright and Mr Wilson.

Matt Wright (fourth from left) and his team in Palu failed to capture the crocodile. ( Supplied: Matt Wright Instagram )

After welding steel traps, flying drones, launching harpoons from runabout boats and placing live ducks as bait above the stricken crocodile, the team finally ran out of time and money to complete the rescue mission.

"We are closing this first stage" Mr Haruna of the BKSDA announced, before defiantly announcing there would be a second stage in May.

"We are afraid that if we continue hunting he will be more stressed, change behaviour (become aggressive) ... and pose more risk to the people living around the river banks."

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The people of Palu who lined the river banks day and night might well have doomed the rescue mission before it began.

Interest was aroused early by a blaze of publicity which at one stage tempted reptile bounty hunters to help trap the croc with the promise of a financial reward — withdrawn when wildlife authorities realised they had mistakenly dangled a potentially dangerous lure to opportunistic amateurs.

Mr Wright and Mr Wilson had never sought any reward and stressed their travel from Darwin to Palu, via Jakarta, had been undertaken at their own expense.

But the clamour of public and media interest frustrated the rescue mission from the outset as the teams' every action was watched, applauded and commentated on by many dozens of locals along the shore.

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Amid the din, the canny crocodile famous for its black rubber 'necklace' suddenly disappeared, perhaps moving downstream away from its favourite hole where a baited trap had been placed.

In the two-month retreat until 'phase two' of the operation resumes in May, Mr Wright has instructed his Indonesian friends at the BKSDA to use the time monitoring the crocodile's habits and trying to boost its confidence around humans.

"Everyone just give him time to build confidence back in us to come close. He's a little bit wary now. The most important thing is no one tries to capture him (for a while)," Mr Wright said.

Back at his Australian base, the Top End wrangler and tourism entrepreneur plans to practice his capture techniques using harpoons, drones and an elaborate "fishing rod" contraption.

"I've got a couple of crocs in Australia, so I want to trial these new methods back there and come back to utilise them here," Mr Wright said.

"We're not giving up, we're going to give him a break."

Mr Wright has launched a GoFundMe page to help him get back to Palu and save the crocodile.