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A giant species of crab normally found in the freezing waters of the Arctic has washed up on the east coast of England.

Oceanographers have been left baffled as to how the crab, which usually inhabit the icy Bering Sea off the coastline of Alaska, got 4,700 miles from its normal habitat.

The crab was discovered on the beach in Redcar, north Yorkshire by oceanographer David McCreadie and his fiancee Diane Weinoski.

The red king crab above was found on Redcar beach in north Yorkshire by oceanographer David McCreadie

The formidable-looking crustacean was around 30 inches across, although the crabs can grow to have a leg span of up to five feet.

It suggests the crab was still relatively young and may have been swept to the UK by powerful currents or in a storm. 

The crabs are increasingly found in the fjords around Norway where they are considered to be an invasive species and can devastate local species.

Some fear that the massive crabs could eventually spread as far south as Spain and Portugal but the sea conditions there are considered to be too warm for them to survive.

David McCreadie, 66, from Great Ayton in north Yorkshire, told the Gazette Live that he had sought the advice of crab expert Dr Normal Sloan, a crab expert in British Columbia, Canada, who confirmed it was a red king crab.

Mr McCreadie said: 'I have dived as an amateur and professional since 1966 and never seen one anywhere near here before.

'I have heard that king crabs have migrated under the Arctic ice cap and been found in Norway, but this is so far south.'

The couple found the crab lying on the sands at Redcar on Friday where it was still alive, but when they returned to the beach over the weekend the crab had died.

Red king crabs get their name from the colour they turn when they are cooked.

The average temperature that the crabs live in is between 4 degrees C (39°F) and 10 degrees C (50°F).

The red king crab, seen here next to a pound coin for scale, did not survive for long on the beach at Redcar

It is around 4,700 miles from the Bering Sea where king red crabs are normally found to Redcar in Yorkshire

Depending on the stage in their life they live at different depths - moving to between 20 and 50 metres by the age of two and down to 200 metres as adults.

Mr McCreadie said: 'I know my crustaceans and when I saw this one, I knew it was special.

'I know king crabs are common in the Arctic, especially around Alaska, and they have turned up in Norway recently, but how on earth this one has got so far south, I have no idea. 

'To my knowledge, this is the first one.

'It could only come from very cold, deep water but we don't have very cold deep water in the North Sea. Perhaps it was on its summer holidays.' 

Red king crabs are considered a pest in Norway where they are invading fjords. Only a handful of fishermen are allowed to catch the giant crabs, as shown above, due to a diplomatic agreement with Russia