A concerned father has spoken out after his 8 -year-old daughter was confronted by the sight of a naked man sunbathing while she was collecting rubbish on Pāpāmoa Beach.

Dave Laidlaw, 41, was walking along the beach towards the Mount from Pacific View Rd with his two young daughters and was shocked when they saw the naked man because there were no signs indicating it was a nudist area, the Bay of Plenty Times wrote.

"[She] spotted some plastic, and with the tide right up was walking along the base of the dunes looking for more rubbish to collect when she stumbled on to a fully nude man. It gave her a hell of a fright."

Laidlaw did not lay a complaint with the police or council because he understood it was a designated nudist area.

He told Kerre McIvor that he is not worried about nudity, but he has a problem with a naked man out on a public beach with an erection. 

"I'm just asking for clarification - is it a local nudist area, or is it just an unwritten rule that everyone knows it's a nude part of the beach."

He says there are no signs to warn people whether they mind nudity or not. 

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