Fishermen discover the presence of rare angel sharks off the coast of Wales. It is a promising sign of life for the already critically endangered creatures.
Angel Shark Sighting
A group of fishermen recently reported angel sharks in Cardigan Bay, the Bristol Channel, and near Holyhead. This is very important information because angel shark numbers are continuing to decline, being some of the most endangered fish in European waters. In fact, all three angel shark species that were usually thriving in the Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea are now listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List.
With such sightings, marine biologists are even more eager to know where the sharks are now living and whether there is a proper population of those sharks in the area. If found, these locations may be considered critical areas for angel sharks.
Conservation Efforts
According to marine biologists, as top predators, angel sharks are an important part of the marine ecosystem they live in. Furthermore, they are also considered the fifth most evolutionarily distinct and globally endangered shark in the world. This means that losing sharks wouldn’t just affect the marine ecosystem, but it would also be a loss to evolutionary history.
Angel sharks were originally fairly common, but they proved to be especially vulnerable to the harmful impacts of fishing, habitat disruption, pollution, marine infrastructure, and disruption by beachgoers and divers, and as such, they became some of the most endangered fish in European waters.
Unfortunately, not a lot is known about angel sharks, so they don’t really get a lot of attention when it comes to conservation efforts. As such, marine biologists are working together to help protect the species and secure their future. Apart from projects such as tagging angel sharks and developing the best safety guides for accidental angel shark catches, they are also encouraging the public to report any angel shark sightings so they can identify the locations that are important to the creatures.
