Hoylake RNLI crew boat surrounded by dolphins in Merseyside

RNLI volunteers were greeted by a surprise welcome party when they took to the water for a training exercise - with a pod of dolphins.

The bottlenose dolphins were spotted "playing" alongside the Hoylake RNLI boat in Liverpool Bay on Sunday 16 June.

The Wirral-based crew were near the Burbo Bank Wind Farm when the pod began swimming alongside their lifeboat and riding the boat's bow wave - the wave that forms as a ship moves through the water.

Volunteers said it was a "treat" to witness the dolphins, about 10 to 15 dolphins were spotted above the water by crew members.

This isn't the first time dolphins were spotted in Merseyside, just a couple of months ago some were spotted in Otterspool.

Experts say this is due to decades of clean-up work which has allowed marine life to return to the region although there is still a problem with sewage brought on by heavy rainfall.