A man out for his morning run got the shock of his life when he crossed paths with an "ant that's supposed to be in a lab somewhere."

29-year-old Dave Hughes from Chester braved the dark for an early morning jog before having to brave something else entirely.

Joggers are frequently seen along the popular River Dee route that runs from Chester to north Wales and is well-known for being quite rural.

He told us: "I was running along the River Dee at about 6 a.m. I couldn't see much as it was quite early but had a head torch on and could make a few things out.

"All of a sudden I see this thing just in front of me and I stop dead in my tracks for about 15 minutes looking at what the heck it was. It was either the biggest ant I have ever seen or something that's supposed to be in a lab somewhere.

"Honestly, a typical morning run and then coming across a baby Alien and Predator had made.

"When I got back I did some Googling and found out it was a Devil's coach horse beetle. Still, it made my skin crawl regardless."

What is a Devil's coach horse?

According to The Wildlife Trusts, the Devil's coach horse is a member of the rove beetle family, of which there are more than 1,000 species in the UK. Rove beetles are one of the most diverse families of animals on the planet: there are at least 46,000 species described so far, and many more still to be discovered.

A ferocious and fast predator, the Devil's coach horse beetle hunts invertebrates after dark in gardens and on grasslands.

It is well-known for curling up its abdomen like the tail of a scorpion when defending itself.

The Devil's coach horse is an all-black, medium-sized beetle, with large jaws and a tail that it holds cocked in a characteristic, scorpion-like position.