An adventurous octopus usually found hidden under rocks on the south coast has been spotted in the shallows off Herne Bay.

The eight-limbed creature, which was found in a foot of water off Hampton, was photographed by dad-of-two Alex Surridge.

The Market Street resident – who was paddling in the sea at the time – said his children were amazed by the find.

Mr Surridge, 34, who works as a health and safety manager, said: “My sister, who was next to me in the sea, said ‘there’s an octopus over there’ and I thought ‘what a load of rubbish’.

“But when I got closer, there it was. It was heading closer to the shore and we were a bit concerned for its welfare, so we decided to stand in its way and it moved off back out to sea.”

Wildlife expert Owen Leyshon, from the Romney Marsh Countryside Partnership, said Mr Surridge was lucky to see it.

He said: “It is unusual – I have never seen one in Britain myself and to see one in the shallows is definitely a newsworthy item.

“They are found around parts of the southern British Isles, but they are so difficult to see because they live in crevices.

“You have to go scuba diving to see them – generally you never see them and they usually only turn up on the coast in nets.”

Mr Leyshon added that the creatures like rocky environments and are rarely seen on the north Kent coast, which is a muddy area.

Earlier this month, just days before the octopus was spotted, roofer Jordan Matthews caught what he thought was a stingray while fishing near King’s Hall.

The 17-year-old, who lives in Beltinge, only took up fishing 18 months ago and spent 20 minutes reeling the 40lb creature in.

Mr Matthews said: “Apparently it is quite rare – people fish for a lifetime and don’t catch things like that.

“I have only been fishing for a year-and-a-half, but I always get the luck. It was the only fish we caught all night.”

Mr Leyshon said he thought the creature was either a thornback or blonde ray, not a stingray.