Days before researcher Luke Yeoman was to open his King Cobra Sanctuary, he lost his life working with the very animals he loved the most.

A protege of Rom Whitaker, Luke was highly respected in the venomous community for his work with King Cobras and his study of their behavior. In a recent article celebrating the opening of his sanctuary, he compared keeping King Cobras to some people keeping fast cars:

"People do say that I am mad but I say it's better than people saying you're bad. I think everything I am doing is good," he said.

Luke loved the species he chose to dedicate his life conserving. Describing his work with them in another article, he said:

My life is about the conservation of the king cobra. Our breeding colony here is a safety net in case the king cobra becomes extinct.

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Writing on his sanctuary's website previously, Mr Yeomans said: 'The King Cobra Sanctuary was born from my lifelong love for this amazing snake species and my concerns that it could eventually disappear from the wild.

'Until mankind changes the way he treats the natural world, a living 'Ark' is required for the survival of many animal species.

It is thought he died of a heart attack caused by a cobra bite.