Only days ago, lifeguards ordered beachgoers out of the waters in Gran Canaria, and holidaymakers at Las Canteras beach are being warned of hammerhead sharks again.

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The sharks come to the Canary Islands to mate this time of year but are normally shy and avoid humans, according to Canarias 7.

In fact, most hammerhead sharks prefer to feed on fish, crustaceans and mollusks.

But today two of the beasts were spotted only 20metres from shore at a popular beach.

Lifeguards quickly raised a purple flag – the most unusual to be raised in the Canary Islands.

It indicates the presence of dangerous marine life, such as jellyfish or sharks.

In total, there are six different coloured flags you can see on the beaches of the Canary Islands – the other five are green, yellow, red, black and blue.

A green flag means it’s safe to swim, while a yellow flag means swimming is permitted but people must be cautious of conditions.

A red flag signals that no swimming is allowed and a black flag means that the beach is closed due to contamination.

Finally, a blue flag means a quality award, where a beach meets its standards.

Attacks from sharks across the Canary Islands are extremely rare and there is less than one, on average, every year.

But only days ago, Canarian Weekly reported an inquisitive hammerhead shark decided to investigate the bathing area of Las Canteras, just 300 metres from Lloret.

Red Cross divers and swimmers acted quickly and monitored the shark, which fled out to sea when they approached it.

Earlier this summer, another hammerhead shark sighting in Gran Canaria earlier this summer resulted in a beach closure.

Two of the predators were seen off the coast at Patalavaca beach in Mogan, before swimming off peacefully.

It was just one of many shark sightings off the Spanish coast within a month, with one of those coming near a Malaga beach in July.

Spanish media reported a heartbreaking discovery earlier this week, when two two hammerhead shark babies were found tangled in a fishing net.