A two-year-old boy is fighting for his life after "dying for six minutes" when he was bitten by one of the world's most venomous snakes in Australia.

Eli suffered a cardiac arrest before being resuscitated and rushed to hospital, where he remains in a critical condition.

The toddler was bitten by a Coastal Taipan last week in Queensland while collecting eggs from a chicken pen. The snake is the third most venomous on the planet.

Snake catcher Richie Gilbert told BuzzFeed News: "When the paramedics arrived he was actually in pretty good shape, but then he suffered a cardiac arrest and was declared dead for five or six minutes.

"Thankfully resuscitation attempts brought him back from the dead."

Eli is currently in hospital in Brisbane and a fundraising page has been set up to help pay for his medical bills.

A message on the page, set up by Blake Hyland, said: "Hearing of the ordeal sent a shockwave through our small, tight-knit community.

"The situation has caused Eli's family to have to drop everything to be by his side at the hospital which is almost 500 kilometers away.

"All funds raised will go to Eli's medical bills along with his hopeful recovery."

So far more than $10,000 (Aus) has been raised (just under £6,000).