Group of rare blue sharks spotted near the Cornish coast

A GROUP of elusive blue sharks has been spotted off the south-west coast of England.

The rare predators, which usually live in the middle of the Atlantic, have been drawn by our warmer waters.

Experts believe they have strayed into UK waters to find seasonal grub.

Seed Rashid told how he sailed out from Penzance, Cornwall, with pals to swim with and film the sharks.

Known to swim in deep waters, Rashid and his shark spotter friends ventured 10 miles from land with their swimming gear at the ready.

Saeed, 46, of Bournemouth, said: “Within half an hour of looking, someone shouted ‘Shark!’

“There were about six around us and gradually six became 15 — they were everywhere.”

Saeed braved the infested waters to take snaps of the killer fish only to find them far larger up close.

“Once we were in they seemed almost twice the size,” he said.

“The white markings on my fins had attracted some attention and even a few bites.

“No wonder why they are known as ‘the wolves of the sea’.

“We decided to call time after an hour.

“I feel honoured to have spent my time in the water with them.”

It is not just the location which makes the spot a rarity.

Roughly 20 million blue sharks are swept up each year due to long-line and trawl fishing.

While their meat holds next to nothing in value, their fins are a lucrative source of income within Asia.

This has lead to a 60 per cent decline in the population in recent years with their official status currently labelled as ‘near threatened’.