A seal puppy has been saved from drowning after being discovered buried as much as its neck in sand on a seaside in Norfolk.
The young mammal was noticed by walker Rachel Rickett beneath the boulders of a sea barrage on Waxham Beach on December 15.
Ms Rickett contacted native charity Friends of Horsey Seals, who rushed to the scene and freed the animal. The puppy was then rapidly launched again into the ocean.
Ms Rickett stated: “I truly believed it was trapped too tight to be rescued but the team sprang into life like a well-oiled machine.
“Within minutes of their arrival the seal was free and seemingly no worse off for its experience. Without help, the next high tide would surely drown it.”