AN injured dolphin which may have been bitten by a shark has been spotted off the South West coast.
The common dolphin, which belonged to a pod of around 70, was photographed diving into the waves last Thursday by Ross Wheeler.
Ross, of the wildlife cruise operator AK Wildlife Cruises, said his team were watching and photographing the dolphins east of Falmouth, heading towards Gull Rock.
"At the time we didn't notice anything. It was only when going back through my photos that I saw the injured dolphin," he said.
Mr Wheeler said he did not think the injury was caused by a propeller because it did not seem to be clean enough.
He added that if the dolphin had been bitten, it must have been a large animal such as a shark.
He has been sharing copies of the photo in the hope of learning more about the dolphin.
"We are asking people to tell us about sightings," he said.
Danny Groves, communications manager for the charity Whale and Dolphin Conservation, said it is not clear what caused the injury.
He said: "Three people here in the science team have all said that it is difficult to tell. It could be a shark bite but could equally be a boat propeller injury."
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