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Spurdog sharks are found in various parts of the world (these are pictured off Vancouver Island, Canada), but they're in sharp decline in Scotland's waters.
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James Thorburn with a tope shark (left) and a common skate. Tope is a highly migratory species that appears in Scottish waters during the summer months. Common skate is the largest skate in European waters.
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Mention sharks and most people think of countries such as Australia or South Africa. But we actually have sharks around the coasts of Britain.
In fact, there are over 25 species of shark in the seas off Scotland’s west coast, along with skate and ray species, which are related to sharks. Unfortunately, over a quarter are now classed as threatened and a further 30% could become endangered. The problem is that all of these species grow and mature slowly. They have long pregnancies and give birth to very few young, both of which makes them vulnerable to overfishing. Shark, skate and ray are caught for their meat, and some are also taken accidentally while fishing for other ‘target’ species. This has led to a huge decline in the numbers found in our seas. For instance, commercial landings suggest that spurdog (or spiny dogfish) sharks have declined by 95% over the last 50 years. And common skate – which were once widespread throughout the British Isles – are now restricted to just a few areas, one being the west coast of Scotland. “Shark, skate and ray stocks in Scottish waters are under severe pressure,” explained James Thorburn, who took up the post of project officer for the Scottish Shark Tagging Programme (SSTP) earlier this year.
www.snh.gov.uk
The post is funded by SNH and the Argyll and the Islands LEADER Programme and run by the Scottish Sea Angling Conservation Network (SSACN). “We urgently need reliable scientific
data to help protect and regenerate stocks,” James continued. “So we’re catching these species and taking details of their weight, sex, width and length. We then tag each individual with a unique number and release them. When they’re recaptured we can gather information on aspects such as their movements, population numbers and growth rates. “These data will help us come up with an effective management plan for identifying and protecting shark nursery and breeding grounds. And this should allow stocks of these endangered species to recover." The SSTP project (see www.
tagsharks.com) relies on an army of recreational anglers – fishing from the shore, kayaks or boats – who volunteer to catch, tag and release the various shark, skate and ray species. They do this either as part of their normal fishing trips or during major tagging events, such as SSACN’s ‘Sharkatag’ weekend (see
www.ssacn.org) held in June, which attracted over 200 volunteer sport fishermen.
Recreational sea angling is a major provider of jobs throughout Scottish coastal communities. It supports many tourism and service industries
– from hotels and campsites to tackle manufacturing and shop staff – as well as direct activities such as bait suppliers and charter boat skippers. Many of these jobs are often in communities with fragile economies, where there’s little scope for other employment or economic activity. Indeed, sea angling in Scotland supports around 4,000 jobs and contributes over £150 million to the Scottish economy annually, with the shark fishing sector alone accounting for around £40 million. “This is a unique kind of job,” James added. “I’m working directly with the sea angling community, who have a wealth of knowledge about the marine environment. They have serious concerns about what’s happening to these animals and they’re keen to see them properly protected for the future.” James’s duties also include arranging training workshops for anglers and raising awareness of Scottish sharks, skates and rays by liaising with commercial fishermen and visiting schools. “We have such an amazing range of shark, skate and ray species off our coasts that most people aren’t aware of, and this project is a great opportunity to show everyone the rich diversity of fish life out there,” he added. “That’s why it’s important that we learn as much as we can about them so that we can look after our seas and conserve the sharks for the future.”
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