Europe's largest marine protected area comes into force

Europe's largest marine protected area (MPA) has come into force for an area of deep sea off the Western Isles.

The West of Scotland MPA involves an area of more than 38,610 sq miles (100,000 sq km) in the north-east Atlantic.

Coral reefs and deep-sea sharks are among the wildlife found at depths of 2,500m (8,202ft).

The designation aims to protect habitats from marine industry projects and some types of fishing.

Marine Scotland, a civil service directorate within the Scottish government, confirmed the protection was now in place.

More than 30% of Scotland's seas are now covered by MPAs.