Contrary to popular belief many species of shark occur around the coast of Ireland. At least 19 different shark species live in or visit our waters, from the large streamlined porbeagle to the plankton-eating basking shark. At least half of Irish sharks including dogfish, porbeagle and basking sharks (pictured right) are residents of our coast all year round.

Sharks grow and mature slowly. They have long pregnancies and give birth to very few young. This makes them incredibly susceptible to over-fishing. In other parts of the world sharks are hunted for food or killed just for their fin, which is worth big money in Asia for shark fin soup.

Here in Ireland, sharks are caught accidentally whist fishing for other target species (bycatch). Trawling in midwater for whitefish and gillnetting at the surface for salmon are the main types of fishing that kill sharks accidentally. This has lead to a huge decline of sharks in our seas.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list of threatened species lists basking sharks , tope, and angel shark as vulnerable, whilst shortfin, mako, porbeagle, blue shark, smooth hammerhead and spiny dogfish are also under threat.

PROTECTION
In the case of the basking shark, there is some good news. Reaching lengths of up to 14 metres, these majestic creatures cruise along the top of the water, filter feeding on plankton. They are the second largest fish on the planet– only the whale shark is bigger.

In the past, gill nets sitting on the surface to capture passing salmon were a ‘wall of death’ to the basking shark, but this practice has been banned and hopefully this will help the numbers recover.

Angling for shark is a growing sport all around our coasts through summer and autumn, but a catch and release policy is practiced, so it is sustainable. A typical angler will place fish oil and fish guts in the water and wait for the scent to drift for a few miles. The shark will pick up on the scent and swim toward the boat, where a whole mackerel is baited on a large hook using a balloon as a float and alarm. The second the balloon is pulled under it bursts and the shark is hooked. Porbeagle , blue shark and tope are caught,(and released) in this way.