Dolphins spotted swimming off Sunderland's Roker Pier

Luke Searle spotted the sea mammals swimming in Sunderland's harbour.

Dolphins and harbour porpoises are often spotted in the Wear and off Sunderland's coastline, as are grey seals which have even been seen as far up the river as Chester-le-Street.

Luke's sighting comes just weeks after a dolphins was spotted from the shore at Seaburn.

But wildlife experts said at the time it was rare to see the creatures so close to shore at this time of the year.

Jim Cokill, director at Durham Wildlife Trust, told the Echo in February: "It depends really on what sort of dolphin it was. We definitely do see dolphins on the North East coast but when they come closer to the shore it is quite rare.

"They tend to move up the coast when we get things like the salmon running. It's less common at this time of year but it's not unheard of."