A weekly fishing trip at Lepe Beach landed a fishing enthusiast from Shirley "the catch of a lifetime" after reeling in a rare Atlantic salmon.

Johnathan Watts, 65, was shocked to realise he'd caught the 29.5in salmon, which has been classified as an endangered species, in Southampton waters.

The keen fisherman, who works as a barber, had gone on his usual Sunday night fishing trip to Lepe Beach with a friend when he hauled in the surprising catch.

He said: “This is the absolute catch of a lifetime. To find such a rare fish in Southampton seems just so strange.

“We were just out on our normal weekend fishing down at Lepe Beach, getting some fresh air when we caught the salmon.

“It was a huge surprise to us and after sharing the picture in some local fishing circles, everyone is as shocked as we were."

The Atlantic salmon’s population has reduced by 70 per cent over the last 25 years and is now classified as an endangered species.

The fish is identifiable by its silvery scales with a few dark spots on the back and may have a pinkish streak flush to the belly.

It is most common to see it swim off the south coast around December and January.

Johnathan added: “A pal of mine had a book with all different types of fish but we were shocked when we realised we had caught the endangered salmon.

“We didn’t want it out of the water for long so didn’t get the chance to weigh it, but I would guess it was around 7 or 8 pounds.

“After dropping it back in the sea it swam away and off it went.”