A large walrus nicknamed 'Thor' was found resting on a UK beach in a rare sighting over the weekend.
The marine mammal was discovered on Sunday morning along the shoreline of the Solent on the south coast having travelled from Europe.
The "big lump" was pictured snoozing at the beach by fisherman Darren Mckell, 49, who was out with his wife Caroline and son Luke in the early hours.
After spotting him at Calshot beach, Hampshire, this morning, Mr Mckell originally thought he was a seal.
"Seeing the walrus was a double-take moment," he explained.
"It was unbelievable and such a shock. I thought it was a seal at first but as I got closer I saw it was huge and it was a walrus.
"It was absolutely amazing to see something like that, especially in these waters. I hadn't realised how rare it was to see a walrus here.
"It was lovely to see but something you'd never expect. I've never seen a walrus in the wild as they don't normally live in these areas.
"Seeing the walrus was a double-take moment."
As the giant mammal rests on the shoreline members of the public have been warned to stay away as Walruses are protected from disturbance under UK law.
British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDLMR) are at the scene alongside coastguard, with medics checking on the large mammal.
Walruses tend to live in and around the Arctic circle and it is rare for them to come this far south, however Thor was last spotted in the Netherlands on November 6 and has been travelling along the coast of France as far as Brittany in the last few weeks
A spokesman from the BDMLR said: "Key advice is being issued to everyone to give the walrus a very wide berth to avoid disturbing it.
"They travel long distances and have rest stops to recover and regain energy before moving on again.
"Every time it is disturbed by people being too close or noisy will impact it's chances of survival. Walruses are protected from disturbance under UK law.
"Of course we do not know how long Thor will be around the UK, but while he/she is here we ask everyone to behave sensibly and responsibly for their safety as well as that of the walrus to avoid a worst case scenario occurring."
