A pine marten has been spotted in southern England for the first time in more than 50 years.

It was caught on film scuttling in the undergrowth by a student using a night vision camera near his home in Bude, Cornwall.

Jack Merritt, 18, sent footage of the creature to experts, who identified it as a young female.

'I filmed it by chance and knew I had captured something different,' Jack said. 'I had no idea of its significance to start with though.

Unusual sight: A pine martin, like the one pictured, was spotted in southern England for the first time in half a century

'I spoke to a few friends who had some suggestions but decided to send it to someone who may have a better idea of what it was all about.

'It is quite a shock and I don't really know what to make of it to be honest.

'You don't really expect to have something like this happen but it is fascinating and I am so glad I was out filming at the time.'

The teenager sent the footage to ecologist Derek Gow - a specialist in the reintroduction of indigenous species.

Mr Gow said: 'The footage taken by Jack is simply amazing. To the best of anyone's knowledge pine martens were believed to be extinct in Southern England after centuries of ruthless persecution by furriers and gamekeepers.

'It's really great to see the see the footage he obtained of what would appear to be a young female.

Exciting spot: A student in Cornwall captured a pine marten on camera, exciting wildlife experts who say there have been no sightings in southern England for 50 years

'Hopefully this sighting could result in further reintroductions of this delightful creature into other areas of suitable habitat in the South West.'

The pine marten is a relative of the weasel and used to be Britain's second most common carnivore.

It was hunted for its fur and almost wiped out in the 1800s.

The size of a cat but slender with brown fur, a bushy tail and a creamy yellow throat, it is nocturnal.