MARINE litter is helping more ocean dwellers than ever drift on to Dorset’s shores.

As reported in the Echo, experts have uncovered a range of species never before seen in the UK which are more used to tropical climates.

It’s thought they have clung on to debris in the ocean which has been washed ashore in recent storms.

And beachgoers have noticed an increase in the number of goose barnacles.

These photos were sent in by Simon Coppack, who said the creatures were ‘all over everything’ he and son Elijah spotted when they were on a stroll at the beach last weekend.

Goose barnacles aren’t native to UK waters. They live in tropical climates and latch on to floating items in the sea.

Storms have then carried the objects through the English Channel and on to Dorset’s beaches.

As reported in the Echo, a Columbus crab is amongst recent finds.

Although goose barnacles are not an unusual site on Dorset’s shores, they are now more prolific due to an increase in marine litter.

Wildlife expert Steve Trewhella said: “What people fail to realise when they see goose barnacles like this is that they would have travelled thousands and thousands of miles.

“What is a concern is the sheer amount of tropical marine animals coming across the Atlantic that otherwise would not be here. We don’t know what it could mean for creatures native to the UK.

“We could end up with species from thousands of miles away living here.

“It’s easy when you see an item washed up at a beach like Swanage, to think it has just come from a few miles away.

“But if it’s got goose barnacles on, it has come from thousands of miles away, from the likes of Bermuda or the Caribbean.”