the size of cats have been spotted scampering along the beach in a town

One of the huge rodents was seen scurrying across the sand of Fuengirola Beach in Fuengirola, south west of Malaga, . An onlooker filmed the hefty rodent on their mobile phone and could be heard shrieking in fright as a second giant rat darted out from underneath a walkway.

The startling scenes unfolded on Tuesday. Local woman Susan claimed that the rats were not a new feature of the beach resort, and can often be seen moving between shops.

"Yes, it's incredible how many there are - and not just on the beach at night, where I see loads of them. During the day, they stroll from shop to shop right in the town centre," she said.

Equally perturbed, local Joha added: "And those ones are small - at dawn, some come out that are way bigger. That's nothing compared to the ones I've seen."

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This is far from the only rat related beach incident to befall Spain in recent weeks. Sunseekers were left horrified when dozens of dead ended up

Following a heavy downpour, the bloated rodents began to bob off a beach in The overburdened local sewage system has been blamed for the disgusting scenes facing beachgoers near Alicante’s Coco and Urbanova beaches.

Rats were pictured lying dead on the sand at Urbanova beach, three miles south of Alicante City Centre. Others were filmed floating lifeless in the water. Dead rats were also spotted near the sailing school at Alicante’s Real Club de Regatas.

The ugly scenes provoked the anger of an opposition councillor for the popular holiday resort, who worries that mixing tourists and dead rats is not a good idea. Trini Amoros, deputy spokesperson for Alicante City Council’s socialist group, said: “Alicante cannot allow rats floating off our beaches.”

A few days later, the sea off another popular Costa del Sol resort turned an alarming brown colour, leaving tourists aghast.

The bizarre incident occurred around midday yesterday at a stretch of beach in Benalmadena, near two hotels - the Globales Los Patos Park Hotel and Hotel Spa Benalmadena Palace.

A -speaking tourist watching from a beachfront balcony was seen pointing out the bubbles emerging from the centre of the discoloured water to a companion.

Council chiefs confirmed overnight that yellow warning flags had been raised when the sea started turning brown, attributing the discolouration to a broken water pipe and assuring the public that there was no danger to public health.