Tourists were terrified when a huge whale shark appeared on a Thai beach.

Footage shows the holidaymakers in shock when the fins emerged in the shallows outside Samed Seaside Resort on Koh Samet island in Rayong province on January 31.

Only the sea creature's dorsal fin and tail were seen as the rest of its body was submerged in the water - recreating the iconic scene from the movie Jaws.

Startled tourist Klaus from Germany, who was staying at the resort, said: 'Nobody went back into the sea for a while after that. I was afraid of being bitten just like in Jaws.'

Onlooker Thon Thamrongnawasawat, a marine biologist and vice dean of the Faculty of Fisheries at Kasetsart University in Bangkok, said the animal was a whale shark, adding he had never witnessed one swimming so close to the shore before.

He said: 'Based on its movement, it didn't look like the whale shark was stranded.

'Koh Samet's beach is connected to the open sea. It is shallow and the underwater terrain is easy to navigate, so it is unlikely the whale shark was stuck.

'It's hard to tell why the whale shark swam to that spot, but the tourists were lucky to have seen it up close.'

Whale sharks are the world's largest living fish, characterized by their enormous size and distinct spotted pattern. Despite their name, they are gentle filter feeders, primarily consuming plankton and small fish.