Beachgoers were left heartbroken after a baby dolphin that was found abandoned by its mother died.
Described as a "rare sight", the tiny mammal was found stranded near the shore by lifeguards near Holywell beach in Cornwall.
The dolphin was taken to a shallow pool after being rescued on Monday evening, but died shortly after.
Incredible footage shows the animal swimming forwards in the water, while lifeguards look on.
Cornwall Wildlife Trust’s marine awareness officer Matt Slater said the dolphin was badly injured after discovering teeth marks on its body.
He told CornwallLive : "It is incredibly rare to see a baby dolphin."
"The baby was weak and had rake marks on its body from the teeth of other dolphins. It was beautiful and tiny – I can’t believe how small they are.
"Common dolphins are one of the smallest dolphin species found in UK waters, slightly larger than a porpoise but much smaller than a bottlenose dolphin. There have been a lot of sightings of common dolphins around our coasts in the past week."
British Divers Marine Life Rescue were called as soon as the dolphin was spotted by the lifeguards and they responded rapidly.
A baby dolphin this young is extremely vulnerable without its mother and it turned out that this individual was not only exhausted but badly injured.
Exactly why the baby had been separated from its mother is unknown, but there were rake marks from common dolphin teeth on the skin and it's possible it was either rejected or separated by aggressive non-family members.
Matt added: "I have spent my lifetime on and in the sea but have never seen anything like this. It shows you how surprising and unpredictable our local seas are."
