A SEAL was spotted perched on a rock on the Isle of Wight.

The harbour seal, also known as common seal, was spotted by a photographer on the Isle of Wight relaxing as the tide came in.

Chichester and Langstone Harbours, as well as Southampton water are also common places for these seals to be, with the Solent providing an ideal location for them to catch fish on the muddy banks.

The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust's Senior Reserves Manager, Jamie Marsh, said: "The Solent is really special. We have the only known resident population of harbour seals in the eastern English Channel and the abundance of other wildlife, particularly birds, makes this an internationally important area.".

Since the first official sighting on the Solent in 1994, there has been around 43-50 harbour seals and several more grey seals recorded, as of 2015.

Bird Aware Solent is a Partnership of Local Authorities and conservation organisations that help protected birds of the Solent by raising awareness of them.

Councillor Seán Woodward, Chairman of the Partnership for South Hampshire (PfSH), a body that oversees Bird Aware, said: "Spotting birds and wildlife like these seals adds to the excitement of visiting the coast. It’s important that all of us give the animals lots of space to feed and rest as disturbance can have an adverse effect on them."