A woman out for a walk with her husband and three young children was shocked to stumble upon a "huge" dead seal which washed up on Otterspool promenade.
Jane Gervin from Rainford was out walking on Sunday when she came across the marine mammal's lifeless body at the end of the promenade.
She said: "I've never seen anything like that before.
"We were out for a family walk early in the morning before it got too busy. We always like to walk to the end of the promenade towards Cressington and we'll generally look at the lovely period houses that are there.
"But this time when we got there our six-year-old shouted out that there was something in the water.
"I was surprised when I looked down and saw a large creature in the water and after looking more closely we realised it was a seal.
"It was such a shame to see it in the condition it was.
"I was surprised as I didn’t think you'd get seals in the Mersey but when I searched the internet I saw a few seals had washed up recently.
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"I don't know whether this is unusual or if it happens a lot but it's sad to see. My three kids were fascinated by it and they said it looked like it was smiling at us."
Another large dead seal washed up on Crosby Beach last month.
The marine mammals can "strand" for any number of reasons - such as through sickness, tiredness, or becoming lost.
