The Wanton Destruction of a lovely fish

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Blunderer

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I know this is technically sea fishing related but as I am a Coarse Angler then I thought it may be of interest to other coarse anglers.

i have just returned from a holiday in Tenerife where I did some rock fishing and also went out on a boat from Peurto Calero. When I got on the boat, they had caught a blue(?) shark the night before, I would estimate 70-80lb. This thing was on the deck of the boat. Its teeth, fin and tail had been removed. When we set off it was unceremoniosly turfed over the side.

Is this standard for sea anglers?

Why oh why did they have to kill it?

Did some brute take the teeth, fin and tail?

Also, the boat was ful of photos of dead marlin.

Unbelievable. No wonder we caught nothing. It was disgusting that a so-called angler would kill something for its teeth.
 
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Ron 'The Hat' Clay (ACA-Life Member)

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I've done quite a bit of sea fishing in my life and to catch a shark, purely for it's teeth and fins is not quite right.

Personally I don't particularly want to catch sharks. Whenever I went sea fishing in the past I preferred catching species that were good to eat. Returning certain species is difficult, sometime impossible.

I have also fished for marlin, and caught one which got attacked by sharks on it's way to the gaff.

I never particularly want to do that again.
 
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alan

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no its not a thing all sea anglers do, its a bit like saying that because in some coutries all coarse fish are killed that its like it here as well.

there are a few groups here trying to pass laws to protect all sharks. the tope in the solent have to be returned by law, and no skipper will let you keep one.

there was the guy in cornwall who wanted to start catching the sharks to sell the fins abroad, he had so much abuse and legal action threatend at him that he changed his mind.

i want to have a go at shark fishing in ireland, again all the sharks have to be returned alive, and unless they are small enougth to lift on to the boat, they are unhooked, or the traces cut while still in the water. the hooks are designed to corrode with in days doing no damage what so ever.
 
F

Frank "Chubber" Curtis

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"Corrode in days!?."

If they're bronze hooks they will. That's all they use on the Keys and it's almost impossible to get steel hooks in any tackle shop there.
When it comes to tarpon, sharks, bonefish, sailfish or marlin catch and release is the unwritten law.
 
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Phil Hackett Manchester Granitewith Pride

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Dave Bird from the SAA and is involved heavily in Shark conservation and tagging programmes once told me of the numbers of sharks caught purely for their fins. The number ran in to tens of millions globally.
The sad fact is that these sharks are landed live on the boats and their fins cut off whilst alive, and the live sharks minus fins are tipped back into the sea to drown. Which sharks apparently do if they stop swimming.

Barbaric I don?t think is a strong enough word for this sort of practice.
 
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Ron 'The Hat' Clay (ACA-Life Member)

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One of the prime spots in the world for catching great white sharks is off Cape Town. They catch them and tag them there.

Catching sharks for their fins was done a great deal off SA. I think it's banned now on pain of a severe prison sentence. And a good thing too.

My attitude towards sea fishing was simple. The concept of "bagging up" never came into it. A few hours early morning, and a couple of nice fish to take home was plenty enough for me. And in any event you had to carry them back to the car.

My favourite type of sea fishing was in the river estuaries. There you can use freshwater tackle and release the fish quite easily if you want. Mind you a couple of grunter or bluefish cooked in tinfoil on the BBQ was a meal fit for a king.
 
W

Wolfman Woody

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Can't understand why they threw it overboard.

Shark is a tasty fish. Cooks up a bit like cod and teh Aussies eat it as the standard fish and chips. They call it flake.
 
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Ron 'The Hat' Clay (ACA-Life Member)

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Bronze Whalers and sand sharks are very good eating Jeff. I think it's a variety of Bronze Whaler that the Aussies eat.
 
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Frank "Chubber" Curtis

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Also Mako and (I've been reliably informed) Nurse Shark but I've never killed any shark for food or any other reason. They're magnificent creatures that have evolved over 100,000,000 years to become top of the marine food chain. They deserve and need our respect.
 
Graham Whatmore

Graham Whatmore

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The treatment of all natural life in the Mediterranean countries leaves a lot to be desired. Bullfighting, bull running, bear baiting, young tigers for photo taking, its no surprise then that they treat marine life like this is it?
 
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