Kevin Parker, a keen Isle of Wight fisherman, was shocked when he found the heads of 50-60 Smooth Hound sharks discarded on the off-slip at the Folly in Whippingham. This shock deepened when he realised how many of them were babies.
“What makes this even more shocking is that the numbers of Smooth Hounds are already rapidly diminishing.” Kevin told OnTheWight, “I think they’ve been caught by someone going out in their own boat, private netting. I wouldn’t have thought this would be a commercial trawler – they wouldn’t risk it.”
‘Private netting’ suspected
Private netting, Kevin explained, is a small boat taking their own trawling nets out, running it and gathering everything that they can, in an effort to make money.
The boat must have come ashore at the Folly, because that’s where the cut off heads and tails of the small sharks were discarded.
Sold Huss or Rock Salmon?
When asked what would happen to them Kevin explained, “They could end up anywhere. They can be sold off as Huss or Rock Salmon and end up in a restaurant or a fish and chip shop.”
This was backed up by the Marine Conservation Society who told OnTheWight that once the head and tails have been removed, it’s hard to identify what type of fish they were.
Kevin is angry about the wanton destruction, “Given the number of Smooth Hounds are dwindling, it’s completely wrong for these people to have done this.”
Selecting the photos
The photos here were sent to OnTheWight by Kevin.
The sheer number of body parts, has made them hard to clearly show what’s actually going on.
We’ve selected a few close-ups in an attempt to show more clearly what was found.
His photos have been circulated among Isle of Wight fisherman, with them also sharing Kevin’s outrage.
The Shark Trust
Kevin asked that we mention the Shark Trust, who are campaigning to ensure that these creatures are protected from this kind of fate.
The Photos
To see the large version of these, just click on the photos to see them full screen.
Close-up crop
Full photos
Images: © Used with the kind permission of Kevin Parker
