A KAYAKER from Polesworthy, near Bude, paddled three miles off the coast of Cornwall to discover himself in the middle of a school of rare bluefin tuna, writes Daniel Jae Webb.

Rupert Kirkwood, 61, found the huge shoal after a three-hour adventure into to open seas near Portmellon in search of interesting sea creatures on Saturday, November 20.

Rupert said: “I had been paddling for about three hours when I saw a mass of swirling birds on the horizon.

“I steamed towards them as fast as my little arms would take me in my kayak and came upon a feeding frenzy of giant bluefin tuna.

“There were about 20 of them swirling at the surface, sometimes jumping out. I sat and watched them and tried to get a photograph for about three hours and not five seconds went past without hearing the splash of a tuna.”

Rupert also spotted 30 dolphins mixing with the tuna and around six porpoises.