Thousands of starfish wash up on Rosemarkie Beach

Thousands of starfish have been washed up on a beach in the Highlands.

A marine expert at Plymouth University told BBC Scotland it could be due to the marine invertebrates getting caught up by strong winds or tides as they change location.

Dr Emma Sheehan said the starballing behaviour had been observed in Brighton: "Suddenly we just started seeing these starfish roll up in a ball and fly along with the tide.

"This looked like a behavioural change so they could move efficiently."

Most of the starfish on the Black Isle beach are thought to have been washed back out to sea.