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A popular East Lothian beach has been named in a list of Scotland's most polluted beaches.
The findings from The Ferret have revealed Dunbar East beach is among those with high levels of contamination from faeces, following an investigation into the quality of the country's wild swimming spots.
According to the independent, non-profit media co-operative, 46 out of Scotland's 89 designated bathing destinations tested positive for unsafe levels of E. coli or intestinal enterococci.
Both can be found in human or animal waste, and can result in stomach bugs, ear and eye infections, and various other ailments, the Daily Record reports.
Dunbar East ranked in sixth place on the top-10 list, with Edinburgh's Portobello West beach coming in eighth.
The Ferret examined annual statistics published by the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (Sepa), which analyses pollution of wild swimming destinations over the summer.
The experts state that the water is said to be of low quality - and people are advised not to swim - if the levels of E. coli and intestinal enterococci exceed specific thresholds.
Other Scottish beaches that were found to have unsafe faecal bacteria levels included South Beach in Ayr, Harbour Beach in Kinghorn, Fife, and Lossiemouth East Beach in Moray. All were recorded as having five unsafe samples.
In Scotland, a major cause of contaminated water is sewer overflow, but it can also be a result of farm run-off, dog waste and bird droppings.
However, 87 per cent of the country's bathing waters are classed as either "good or excellent", compared with 85 and 94 per cent in England and Wales respectively.
A Scottish Government spokesperson told The Ferret: "97 per cent of Scotland's bathing waters currently achieve the bathing water quality standards with 87 per cent being rated 'good' or 'excellent'.
"We encourage everyone to make use of Sepa's resources and information to help make an informed decision about where and when to bathe.
"We also encourage beach users to continue to take all waste and litter home, and dispose of dog waste responsibly."
The list of the 10 beaches in Scotland with the most unsafe faecal bacteria samples can be found below. More information can be found on The Ferret website.
The Scottish beaches with the worst faecal contamination Irvine Ayr (South Beach) Kinghorn (Harbour Beach) Lossiemouth (East) Dhoon Bay Dunbar (East) Maidens Portobello (West) Rockcliffe Sandyhills