A baby shark was rescued after becoming washed up on a beach in Weymouth.

The shark was found by local Tina Arrowsmith and her daughter after they went for a swim at the end of Greenhill.

The shark which has been identified by the Save Our Seas Foundation as Mustelus mustelus or a smooth-hound shark is commonly found in UK waters.

Tina and her daughter saw the baby shark washed up on the beach on the morning of February 15.

After three attempts to pick up the shark and put it back in the water, the shark finally swam away to safety.

Local shark encounters have been common in Dorset in recent years, including a basking shark spotted just off Chesil beach in 2019.

This baby smooth hound poses little threat to members of the public, largely feeding on crustaceans and shellfish.

In fact, the smooth-hound is often referred to as a 'gummy shark' due to not possessing the typical sharp shark-like teeth and instead having blunt crushing plates in the shark's mouth.

The sharks can grow up to 4 feet long and are commonly found in waters in the South-West of the UK, aswell as the Mediterranean sea.

British Sea Fishing describe the shark as: "a shallow water shark species, which favour sandy, shingle and light broken ground, and tend to stay clear of heavy, rocky ground.

"They live in relatively shallow water and are seldom found in water more than one hundred metres deep, and regularly come close enough to land to be targeted by the shore angler.