A dead humpback whale tangled in fishing gear has washed ashore at Thurso Bay in Caithness.

The whale was reported to the Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme after a fisherman spotted the animal near Scrabster.

A veterinary pathologist and a stranding coordinator are making their way to the site to assess the animal.

A necropsy will be performed to establish the cause of death of the mammal.

It is the fourth instance of a whale being found fatally entangled in five weeks.

A juvenile humpback whale was washed ashore near Dunbar on April 23, while two weeks later a juvenile minke whale was found dead at sea near Iona entangled in creel lines.

On May 19, another minke whale was spotted entangled off the coast of Barra by kayakers, however despite efforts to free the animal, it washed ashore and quickly died.