A giant earthworm called Dave has made his way into the record books after growing to the size of a small snake.
The 40cm (15.7in) annelid, weighing 26g, is the largest earthworm ever found in the UK.
He was spotted by Paul Rees from Widnes, Cheshire in his vegetable patch and named by his stepson George.
Natural History Museum scientist Emma Sherlock, who chairs the Earthworm Society of Britain, said she could hardly believe it when she first laid her eyes on Dave.
"I was bowled over by the size of this worm when I opened the plastic box they sent it in," she said.
"Not only is it really long, it is almost twice as heavy as any other wild earthworm ever seen, weighing the same as a small chocolate bar."
Earthworms from the Scottish island of Rum that were previously thought to be the UK's largest, but compared to Dave they are quite puny.
The longest of the Rum worms, unearthed in 2015, grew to 39.6cm (15.6in), but none was more than 12.6g - less than half Dave's weight.
Experts believe they flourished because of a lack of predators and rich soil.
But how Dave got to be such a monster - he is three times longer and more than five times heavier than the average worm - remains a mystery.
Ms Sherlock said: "With worms this size Paul must have an incredibly fertile and well-drained veg plot with decaying matter quickly recycled back into the soil."
She added: "I look forward to seeing if anyone can find an even bigger example by taking part in the Earthworm Watch survey this autumn."
Earthworm Watch is a survey of earthworms and soil quality run by the Natural History Museum and the Earthwatch Institute in association with the Earthworm Society.
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