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Exeter scientist reveals secrets of Scotland’s basking sharks in new report

Seas between the islands of Skye and Mull on Scotland’s west coast are highly important for basking sharks, according to a report published by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH).

Each year large numbers of basking sharks are seen in an area of the Sea of the Hebrides which is currently being assessed as part of the Scottish Marine Protected Areas Project.

The report sets out findings from the first two years of a project which aims to reveal some of the mysteries surrounding the world’s second largest fish. The project is a joint venture between SNH and the University of Exeter, and is the first known to use satellite tagging technology to track the near real-time movements of basking sharks. (more…)

Public Sightings Suggest Increase in Basking Sharks in British Waters

By Guest PostJuly 30, 2012Naturebasking sharks, brendan godley, british waters, cornwall wildlife trust, fishery, ireland, jean luc solandt, marine conservation, northeast atlantic, norway, public sightings, ruth williams, scotland, shark, uk water, university of exeter

The number of basking sharks recorded in Britain’s seas could be increasing, decades after being protected from commercial hunting in the late 20^th century.

The most comprehensive analysis ever undertaken of basking shark sightings in UK waters, by the University of Exeter, the Marine Conservation Society (MCS), Cornwall Wildlife Trust (CWT) and Wave Action, is published in the journal Marine Ecology Progress Series.

The northeast Atlantic hosted an extensive commercial fishery for basking sharks, mainly in Norway, Ireland and Scotland, where more than 81,000 were killed between 1952 and 2004, hunted largely for their liver oil. Large-scale hunting ended in the UK in the middle of the twentieth century, though it continued at low levels in Norway until 2000. (more…)

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Exeter scientist reveals secrets of Scotland’s basking sharks in new report

Public Sightings Suggest Increase in Basking Sharks in British Waters