A woman has been forced to go to hospital with a nurse shark attached to her arm after it bit her while she was swimming and refused to let go.

The 23-year-old woman was pictured at the beach in Boca Raton with the 2ft shark clinging to her right arm just below the elbow.

Paramedics used a splint board to support the woman's arm and the shark as she was taken away from the beach on Sunday afternoon.

But the determined shark would not let go, even after it had died.

Beachgoer Shlomo Jacob told the South Florida Sun Sentinel: "The shark wouldn't give up".

"It was barely breathing but it wasn't letting go of her arm, like it was stuck to her or something".

A spokesman for Boca Raton Ocean Rescue said the woman remained calm and there was little blood from the wound.

She was in a stable condition in hospital, according to Boca Raton Fire and Rescue.

Witnesses claimed other swimmers had been "messing" with the shark, the newspaper reported.

Nurse sharks are common along the US East Coast and grow up to 14ft.

Unlike other sharks, they are slow-moving and can remain motionless on the sea bed.

They will bite defensively if stepped on or bothered.