A lucky teenager has escaped with minimal injuries after being bitten by a saltwater crocodile in the East Kimberley region of Western Australia.

The boy, 14, was wading waist-deep in water at Ivanhoe Crossing in the Ord River near Kununurra yesterday when the animal bit into his leg.

The boy's mother took him to hospital for treatment and reported the incident to the Department of Environment and Conservation.

District wildlife officer Len Terry says crocodiles are common in that area but it is rare to get bitten by a saltwater croc.

"In the two years I've been in the job here, this is the first one that I've actually had a report of a person being bitten," he said.

"We do occasionally get anecdotal ones but the ones I know of have mainly been freshwater crocodiles biting people."