An endangered giant fish, absent from Pembrokeshire waters for about half a century, has made a dramatic return.

There has been a dramatic increase in sightings of Atlantic bluefin tuna off the Pembrokeshire coast in the last two months according to conservation charity Sea Trust.

According to the World Wildlife Fund for Nature, bluefin are the largest tunas and can live up to 40 years.

They migrate across all oceans and can dive deeper than 3,000 feet.

Atlantic bluefin tuna are the largest and most endangered of the three species of bluefin.

Bluefin used to be in abundance in the UK’s waters, however, overfishing led to a massive collapse of their populations.

Sea Trust says that decreased fishing pressure and possibly impacts of climate change have resulted in the fish returning to the UK over the last several years, after being mostly absent for over 50 years.

Bluefin tuna can live for up to 50 years, however, due to overfishing – they often don't make it past 15 years. They can grow to a massive four metres in length.

“We have been seeing Atlantic bluefin tuna sporadically on our surveys around the Pembrokeshire Coast for the past year,” said Sea Trust Wales project manager Nadia Tomsa.

“However, sightings have increased dramatically over the last two months.”

This week was a highlight in Atlantic bluefin tuna spotting, as Sea Trust photographer and volunteer Ken Barnett finally managed to snap a shot of the elusive giant fish at Strumble Head.

“I’ve seen the Bluefin tuna a few times on surveys this year. However, they’re always extremely unpredictable and so quick,” said Nadia.

“Amazingly, Ken managed to get a shot of one. The species is unmistakable when they leap out of the water, and it’s incredible to be able to see them from the shore in Pembrokeshire.”

To see more of Ken’s photography, visit https://whaleswales.blogspot.com/.