'Amazed' father and son find an octopus in a rockpool on North East coast

Steven Barker was with his son Callum, 16, when they spent two hours at Blackhall Rocks yesterday afternoon on their way home after a journey.

Callum spotted what he thought was a carrier bag but when he did a closer inspection, he found out it was an octopus.

Steven said: “I'm from Hartlepool and myself, my son Callum and a work friend Tony went to Durham and we decided to go to Blackhall Rocks on the way back.

"We were there for a couple of hours and my son was exploring the rock pools and he saw what he thought was a carrier bag but it was the octopus.

"We took a few photographs then I picked it up and put it into the sea as there were a few seagulls about. It sat there in the water then swam away. It's the first time any of us had seen a wild octopus, never mind in the North East.”

There was extra excitement when the octopus returned to the waters and changed colour.

Steven added: “It changed from dark red to a speckled yellow red colour. We were amazed to see it as we didn't think they lived around here.”

People across the North East have enjoyed some amazing sights on the region’s coastline in recent years.

Jellyfish measuring almost 1ft-long were seen on the North East sands in August last year.

And a pod of 12 dolphins brought delight to spectators in Wearside.

They were spotted in the waters near Roker Pier in June 2020.

And they delighted onlookers once more when they returned to the same stretch of water in September that year.

The Sunderland Echo reported on sightings of whales, once again in North East waters, in March this year.

But which unusual wildlife finds have you discovered during your visits to coastlines in the area?

Have you come across a rare species or watched marine life in the waters around our coast? Get in touch and tell us more by emailing [email protected]

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