Fury as large 11ft shark discovered washed up on UK seashore by New Year’s Day walker
WARNING, GRAPHIC CONTENT: People are calling for angling and ‘all blood sports’ to be banned after a huge thresher shark washed up on a beach, the second of the endangered species found dead within weeks
A colossal thresher shark was found dead on a Cornish beach, sparking fears it had been killed by anglers. The sight of the 11ft-long beast has left animal lovers raging, who believe the endangered species probably died after being caught by fishermen.
The thresher, which has a tail longer than its body, died from injuries caused by a fishing line, experts claim. A New Year’s Day dog walker Par beach, Cornwall, discovered the washed up thresher, which is classified as an endangered species in European waters. Experts from Cornwall Wildlife Trust’s Marine Strandings Network examined the shark at the beach.
After examining the beast, they reason the shark had experienced a massive trauma caused by angling, NeedToKnow reported.
A spokesperson said: “Initial assessments suggest that the shark had experienced significant trauma, likely caused by line-caught sport fishing. Bycatch remains a major threat to ocean wildlife.
“Cornwall Wildlife Trust urges water users to follow safe handling and release practices to protect our marine animals.
“Huge thanks to our amazing volunteers and community members who helped move the animal safely and kept people at a safe distance.”
The added that the post-mortem results are being concluded and that the full results will be published in due course. The spokesperson then urged people to read up on responsible fishing on the Cornwall Wildlife Trust’s website.
It is the second thresher to be found dead on a British beach in weeks, after a thresher was rescued from an abandoned fishing net in Clovelly, Devon, just to be found dead at the same beach days later.
The shark deaths have enraged animal lovers who are now calling for a ban on sports fishing. Fiona Wodehouse said: “All blood sports need banning.”
Pip Evans added: “There’s no excuse for animal abuse. No animals should ever be abused for a human to get an adrenaline kick, or whatever they get out of it. It’s always the animals who are the victims.”
Cherry Berry pointed out that added that while straws have been banned to save the fish, fishing hasn’t. Another animal lover, Sylvia Morley said: “How very sad.”
However, Kaye Brennan defended the fishing industry claiming that fishers are “just supplying”, adding: “ Good ones do their best – in the toughest of circumstances. Industrial fishing is incredibly damaging and should be stopped.
“But the consumer must surely take some responsibility here.”
