A major air and sea search for an angler who was swept off coastal rocks has been called off.
The rescue bid was mounted on Friday morning after the fisherman plunged into the North Sea south of Aberdeen as he fished in the dark.
But despite a thorough search, no trace of the missing man could be found and the rescue efforts were halted, coastguards said.
Emergency services were called out at around 6.15am when the fisherman's friend, who had been angling with him, alerted police.
A helicopter from RAF Lossiemouth, four coastguard rescue teams and a lifeboat all scoured the sea around the Cave of Red Rocks, Altens.
Rescuers on the helicopter used night-vision goggles to scan the sea and search teams from Aberdeen, Portlethen, Stonehaven and Gourdon joined the efforts.
Officers from Grampian Police also attended.
The man, who has not been named, was wearing a waterproof jacket, but not a lifejacket which could have kept him afloat.
His fishing companion, who informed the police, is Polish, but emergency services could not confirm the nationality of the missing angler.
Efforts were hampered by freezing conditions and high winds, Aberdeen Coastguard said.
Shona Coull, coastguard watch assistant, confirmed: "The search was terminated at 11am this morning with nothing found."
She also described conditions as "very poor".
"This happened when it was still dark this morning and it was very cold out there," she said.
