SCIENTISTS are about to starting a dating agency - for ageing and lovelorn shellfish.

Freshwater pearl mussels once thrived in northern waters but their numbers are now dwindling, possibly because of illegal hunting for the precious stones they sometimes carry.

They do not get about much and their sex life is not what it once was and as a result those that survive are middle-aged and live solitary lives in empty beds.

Now the Environment Agency and English Nature are investigating plans to save them - and among them is a plan to relocate isolated individuals and help them socialise.