Kayaker speaks of moment suspected swordfish swam metres from his boat near Portobello beach

‘I was a little nervous – I don’t think I breathed for a minute – but it was amazing to be able to see its shape beneath the water.’

A kayaker has spoken of the moment a suspected swordfish swam just metres from him while he was out paddling at sea.

Philip de Iongh, a youth worker from Musselburgh, was kayaking just off the Joppa end of Portobello beach on Friday morning when he spotted an unusual looking fin coming towards him.

The large sea creature, which is understood to be a swordfish, swam about five metres from his kayak.

Philip de Iongh kayaking next to what is thought to be a swordfish just off Portobello beach picture/Andrew Stark

"It didn't seem to mind me being there, but I was drifting slowly rather than paddling towards it,” the 28-year-old said.

"It was swimming at the same speed as I was drifting, and disappeared after a minute or so.

"I was a little nervous – I don’t think I breathed for a minute – but it was amazing to be able to see its shape beneath the water.

“I had seen the fins from Joppa rocks and knew that it was a suspected swordfish, and the shape I saw fits the description.”

Local fitness coach Andrew Clark managed to capture Philip next to the mysterious fin on camera while he was standing on Portobello beach.

He said: “I train a lady regularly down on the beach and we often get interrupted by wildlife events - dolphins, gannets, terns, seals, puffins and now swordfish. I've not always had my camera with me, but luckily did today.”

A video emerged last week of what was thought to be a swordfish swimming just off the Portobello coast.

The footage was taken by Edinburgh resident and marine biologist Katie O’Neil, who saw an alert on Facebook group Forth Marine Mammals that said a basking shark had been spotted just off the coast.

She told the Evening News she was convinced the animal was not a basking shark, and after discussions with marine biologists, she determined it was almost certainly a swordfish.

Scottish Natural Heritage have a code for nature lovers to follow when spotting wildlife to prevent disturbing animals when admiring them. To find out more information visit here.

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