A fisherman captured the incredible moment 50 dolphins surrounded his boat in the UK sea in a 'scene never seen before'.
Fisherman Tristan Northway was treated to a pod of dolphins that swam up to his boat in Torquay, Devon.
He managed to capture impressive photos of the magnificent creatures, which he documented on his Facebook page, Devon Live report.
And despite being lucky to live right by the dolphins , the fisherman has revealed that it is important residents and visitors do not forget about the vibrant society of sea life that can be discovered in Britain's sea.
Being out at sea for most of his days has inspired him to teach others about the weird and wonderful creatures he encounters which are closer to home than most would expect.
He said: "Being able to teach people about these creatures that you can find on your doorstep is a bit of an eye opener. Of course, you've got the other aspect of it when I'm out at sea.
"I saw a pod of about 50 dolphins swimming around the boat that people have never seen before."
The fisherman was able to capture one incredible snap of several dolphins surrounding his trawler, the Adela BM79, as he spoke about the encounter.
He said: "It was the beginning of the year I think it was, I had a pod of dolphins visit. It was a beautiful flat calm day and there were dolphins swimming all around the boat.
"They were making noises that I'd never heard before and that again was an eye opener to what people can see out there. Seeing these creatures like that is amazing."
Mr Northway used to sell fresh fish - which were caught mere hours before they reached hungry customers' plates, right from his boat - at Brixham harbour during lockdown. The harbour is located on the southern aspect of Tor Bay and boasts one of the largest fishing fleets in the UK.
Sadly he revealed that he cannot sell from at the harbour any longer due to legal restrictions, but he still sells fresh fish locally and directly to the public.
The fisherman also revealed that he has started a petition to try to get permission to sell in the harbour again.
The local also admitted that since selling at the harbour, he became part of the local sea life community.
And most surprisingly, he befriended two seals - which he has amusingly named Bob and Not Bob.
Mr Northway explained their names: "Bob turned up first and she used to just sit and bob around waiting for a feed of fish so I called her bob. Then not so long after this other seal started turning up and I was like 'Well that's not Bob' So I called her Not Bob.
"I can tell the difference between the two, both of them have got their own little personalities."
The two regularly recognise his boat and come to get the odd fish he gives them. They each have their own particular personalities, as the fisherman said: "You've got Bob who takes fish from the scupper of the boat and they both take it out of my hand.
"But obviously I have to promote not feeding seals because they are wild animals and if you're not careful they will literally take your hand off. So if a seal bites you, it's not the seal's fault - it's your own fault."
Though he does feed them, Mr Northway says it's important to promote not feeding seals as they are wild animals and must be respected as they can be dangerous. He knows these two very well though and makes sure they are looked after.
It's not just seals that Mr Northway has encounters with, however. He has a whole host of sea creatures that he's photographed and documented which he posts on his Facebook.
He teaches children and visits local schools about this wildlife and how important it is, adding: "Watching the kid's faces seeing these little crabs that I had found scurrying around a board I brought in and being able to hold the crabs and the sea snail and all of that lot
"Watching their faces was fricking amazing. Kids nowadays don't go down the the beach and they don't know about it."
