TV star Steve Backshall had a "dangerously close encounter" as he filmed a series about hippos.

The naturalist and explorer got up close to the animals while making Hippo Watch with Steve Backshall, which can be seen on Channel 5. But a clip from the series which was shared on Instagram showed some of the hippos getting rather too interested in the camera crew as they filmed in South Africa, leaving Steve exclaiming: "They're coming our way!"

The clip, captioned "Dangerously close encounter with hippos", showed Steve and his crew in the water, filming a group of hippos nearby, reports the Mirror.

"Even on waters where hippos are familiar with boats and people, beware of hippos who break away from their group," the voiceover warned.

Looking at the animals, Steve spotted they were looking at him and told viewers: "Oh, he's standing up and having a good close look at me. Look at that! Spy hopping right up out of the water.

"OK guys, keep a very close eye on him, yeah? Two of them are splintered off from the pod, and they're looking right at me. Three. Three of them now. And definitely curious."

As the hippos started to move towards them, he exclaimed: "I think those two are coming our way. No? Yeah, they are. Look, they're coming our way!"

A member of the film crew was then heard telling the rest of the team: "OK guys, they're moving now, come on."

Steve quickly made his way back to his boat, admitting: "We're getting very close."

The voiceover then noted that it was "definitely time to leave", continuing: "You can never get complacent around these animals, and should always err on the side of caution."

The Instagram caption said: "Wrong place. Wrong time. @backshall.steve finds himself dangerously close to a hippo that's broken from the pack... One wrong move could be fatal."

The series has wowed viewers, with one person posting on Instagram: "Phenomenal documentary." "Fantastic, thoroughly enjoyed this," said someone else, as another said it was "incredible" viewing.

"Very interesting," posted another impressed viewer. "Steve, you're quite literally my childhood role model," commented another fan, adding: "So awesome to see all of this content."

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Hippo Watch is available on Channel 5.