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A US border patrol agent has been shot dead near Arizona's US-Mexico border in an area known for drug-smuggling, BBC reported.

Another was wounded when the two responded to a tripped ground sensor in early on Tuesday.

Nicholas Ivie, 30, was the first agent killed since 2010, when a death led to a review of a botched US-run operation.

In Operation Fast and Furious, agents lost track of illegal guns from Arizona allowed into Mexico to target dealers.

Authorities said Mr Ivie and a fellow agent had been on foot near Naco, Arizona, about five miles (8km) north of the border, when gunshots rang out around 02:00 local time (09:00 GMT).

The second agent, who has not been identified, was airlifted to hospital and is being treated for non-life threatening injuries.

Speaking at a news briefing, authorities declined to say whether any weapons had been seized at the scene.

"As they were walking up the trail, they reported taking gunfire," Cochise County Sheriff's spokeswoman Carol Capas told Reuters.

She said it was not known who shot the agents.