Video: Dolphins surprise RNLI crew off Fife Coast

The crew had not long left Burntisland when the dolphins approached, and began jumping out of the water close to the boat.

The display saw a large number of the mammals play around the RNLI vessel for around 20 minutes, much to the delight of the crew.

Neil Chalmers, of Kinghorn RNLI said they were amazed when the dolphins turned up.

"We were out training, and heading back from Burntisland and they came up towards us as we were heading back to Kinghorn.

"So we just stopped and enjoyed the spectacle.

"It was amazing. They were just so close, and right round the boat, so it's pretty rare. Everyone enjoyed it. I think the video tells it all.

"They were there for around 15-20 minutes. I think they were probably eating initially, because there was a lot of diving up and down.

"They seem to be going up and down with the tide every day. We also saw them on Saturday evening, and they were just ahead of us, but the footage wasn't as good due to the sun and the wind, it was much better on Wednesday night.

"It's probably happened two or three times in my career, over the past 15 years. You just have to be lucky to see them."

Neil added that people should think twice before rushing out in a boat to try and find the dolphins.

He said: "We were just in the right place at the right time, but we wouldn't want to see a lot of boats chasing them around and disturbing them. They just came towards us."

The sighting follows a number of others in recent weeks, during a year in which the humpback whales made their second consecutive appearance in the Forth.

"The Forth certainly seems to be improving as well. We've had the whales here two years now, and the numbers of seals and dolphins certainly aren't declining. It looks like they're probably increasing, it's good to see."