Rescue teams have been stood down after a pod of pilot whales became stranded off the Kent coast.

It is thought nine of the mammals were stuck on mudflats of the Swale estuary at Seasalter, between Whitstable and the Isle of Sheppey.

About 30 members of the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) were understood to be at the scene yesterday and using specialist equipment to reach the whales.

They were joined by crews from the HM Coastguard, however, due to the tides and substrate, the whales were unreachable.

Both teams stood down at around 10.30pm.

As of 7am today, a spokesperson for BDMLR said the whales had not yet been sighted after it was hoped they would be able to refloat when the tide came in.

Birdwatcher Mark Chidwick captured the whales on video yesterday when only the tops of their fins were visible.

He was first alerted to the pod by another birdwatcher who posted the news on the Faversham Birding Group community page on Monday morning.

However, he did not see them until about 2pm when he and his friend Mike Gould went to The Sportsman pub to count the Brent Geese in the Swale.

Mr Chidwick said: “I was scanning the geese and I picked up on the whales on the edge of the Swale. We watched them but thought it was strange as the tide was dropping.

“You could see they were getting distressed. We posted what was happening online as best as we could and got in contact with the correct people.”

Pilot whales, which can be found worldwide, are one of the largest oceanic dolphins and are only exceeded in size by orcas.

It is not the first time whales have become stranded in the Swale.

In 2020, a sperm whale died two days after it was first spotted off the Whitstable coast.

Six years earlier, drivers were left stunned as a lorry carrying a 50ft headless sperm whale hurtled down the A2 after the huge creature became stranded near Seasalter.

The bloody carcass was taken to a landfill site in Canterbury.