Beyond the bathtub: rubber duck invasion begins

An armada of rubber ducks that have been roving the high seas for 15 years have finally made landfall in the UK.

The ducks were released onto the Pacific Ocean when a container carrying the plastic toys was washed off a ship carrying them from Hong Kong to Washington in 1992.

A retired teacher found the first duck to reach the UK near Woolacomb beach in Devon.

Mrs Harris told The Daily Mail: “I saw the duck lying on the high tide mark and picked it up because I thought I had read something about toy ducks in the newspaper.

"It's covered in brown algae and it's got barnacles on it. It's bleached white at the bottom and the top of the head is cracked and has burst open.”

Mrs Harris has sent the duck to the original makers, First Years Inc, to confirm its identity as one of the seafaring toys.

If the duck is genuine, Mrs Harris could claim the finders fee of $100 (£50), or she could try her luck on Ebay where the ducks have sold for £1,000.