Strange spheres have been seen flying in the skies of Bury St Edmunds this week.

A resident phoned police after seeing four black spheres flying in formation over the Howard estate and out towards Fornham St Martin.

A police spokeswoman said the sighting was reported at around 9.30am on Saturday, but they have received no further calls.

The police have now passed on the information to the Ministry of Defence.

An MoD spokeswoman said: "We have received a report that says four black spheres were seen flying over Bury St Edmunds at 9.27am on April 21, 2007. The report was passed to us by Ipswich police.

"Unless there is corroborating evidence to suggest that the UK's airspace may have been compromised by a hostile or unauthorised foreign military aircraft, the MoD does not investigate or seek to provide a precise explanation for each of the 200-300 'UFO' reports we receive each year.

"We believe it is possible that rational explanations, such as aircraft lights or natural phenomena, could be found for them, but it is not the function of the MoD to provide this kind of aerial identification service.

"We could not justify expenditure of public funds on investigations which go beyond our specific defence remit."

The sighting comes just months after an alleged incident involving jets from RAF Lakenheath.

It is claimed that military air traffic control contacted the jets to intercept a UFO on January 12 - but air traffic control denied making the call, while the MoD claimed it could have been part of a weather balloon.