Noteworthy Shark Records from Mediterranean and European Waters – March to August 2013

Helmut Nickel, Shark Year Magazine,
02. September 2013

The following list provides a supplement and continuation of our previous post from 26. March 2013 Noteworthy Recent Shark Records From Mediterranean And Adjacent Waters.

Thirty-eight noteworthy recent Elasmobranch records from Mediterranean and European waters
( reported from 23. March 2013 to 30. August 2013 ).

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Details on each specimen in descending chronological order :

Specimen No. 1

Date: reported on 30. August 2013
Location: La Línea, Cádiz Province, Spain.
Species: Porbeagle shark ( Lamna nasus )
Size: said to be ca. 3 metres in length, 185 kg in weight.

A record from the far-western Mediterranean Sea, near the Strait of Gibraltar.
Commercial fishermen made the accidental catch in the waters between
Punta Chullera and Primera Torre.
Source and Photo Credit: Antonio Marchena (via La Linea Digital ).

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Specimen No. 2

Date: reported on 30. August 2013
Location: Soverato, Calabria Region, Italy.
Species: Bluntnose sixgill shark ( Hexanchus griseus ).
Size: 2.40 metres in length.

A record from the Ionian Sea.
The specimen was found stranded on the beach of the Lido San Domenico in Soverato,
situated on the shores of the Gulf of Squillace in southern Italy.
Source and Photo Credit: catanzaroinforma.

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Specimen No. 3

Date: 29. August 2013
Location: Strait of Messina, Italy.
Species: Basking shark ( Cetorhinus maximus )
Size: estimated to be 6 metres in length.

The large shark was observed and filmed by Lucio Cozzupoli off Cannitello
in the northern waters of the Strait of Messina. You can see the footage on YouTube here.
Source: MeteoWeb. Photo Credit:  Lucio Cozzupoli

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Specimen No. 4

Date: 25. August 2013
Location: Amalfi, Campania Region, Italy.
Species: Sixgill shark ( Hexanchus species )
Size: said to be 1.80 metres in length.

A record from the Gulf of Salerno (Tyrrhenian Sea) in south-western Italy.
The specimen died as unwanted bycatch in a fishing net near Capo di Conca
and was brought to the port of Amalfi.
Source and Photo: Il Vescovado.

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Specimen No. 5

Date: 21. August 2013
Location: Tunisia
Species: Blue shark ( Prionace glauca )
Size: not reported.

The specimen stranded on a beach in Menzel Temime,
wich is located on the Cap Bon peninsula in northeast Tunisia.
There is also a video of the shark on YouTube here.
Sources and Photo Credit: Tunivoyage and Great.King/YouTube Channel.

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Specimen No. 6

Date: 20. August 2013
Location: Capraia, Tuscany Region, Italy.
Species: Bluntnose sixgill shark, female ( Hexanchus griseus ).
Size: said to be 2.90 metres in length and 114 kg in weight (gutted).

A record from the southern Ligurian Sea.
The catch was made by commercial fishermen at a depth of 130 meters,
while operating about 10 miles east of Capraia Island.
It’s the north-westernmost of the seven islands of the Tuscan Archipelago.
Source and Photo Credit: Grosseto Oggi.

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Specimen No. 7

Date: 20. August 2013
Location: Province of Brindisi, Italy
Species: Bluntnose sixgill shark ( Hexanchus griseus ).
Size: said to be 3 metres in length.

A record from the southern Adriatic Sea.
The specimen ( a bycatch in commercial fisheries ) was landed at
Torre Canne in the municipality of Fasano.
Source and Photo Credit: La Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno.

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Specimen No. 8

Date: reported on 15. August 2013
Location: Montenegro.
Species: Thresher shark ( Alopias vulpinus )
Size: said to be 4 metres in length.

A record from the Adriatic Sea.
The photo of the male thresher shark was taken in Rafailovići
that is situated in the Budva Riviera, Montenegro.
Source and Photo Credit: RTS.

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Specimen No. 9

Date: 14. August 2013
Location: Cork County, Ireland.
Species: Shortfin mako shark ( Isurus oxyrinchus ).
Size: almost 2 metres in length.

Sport-fishermen aboard the boat “Jorree Jade” caught this young mako
off the coast of Union Hall in County Cork, south-western Ireland.
The shark was tagged and released ( YouTube video here ).
Source and Photo Credit: Jorree Jade Charters.

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Specimen No. 10

Date: 02. August 2013
Location: Sicily, Italy.
Species: Blue shark ( Prionace glauca ).
Size: said to be almost 2 metres long.

The apparently injured blue shark was sighted in shallow waters of a beach
in Porto Palo di Menfi, located on the south-western coast of Sicily.
Beachgoers were able to capture the shark with their bare hands.
The animal died shortly afterwards.
Source: Live Sicilia.

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Specimen No. 11

Date: 29. July 2013
Location: Cascais, Portugal.
Species: Basking shark ( Cetorhinus maximus ).
Size: said to be 3,5 metres in length.

Portuguese fishermen discovered this young basking shark ( already dead )
floating off the coast of Cascais, located about 30 km west of Lisbon.
According to other sources, the basker got accidentally caught in a fishing net
about 1.6 km from the Guia Lighthouse.
There is a video of the specimen in our Video Section (here).
Source: Jornal de Notícias.
Photo Credit: Tiago Alexandre Miranda.

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Specimen No. 12

Date:  21. July 2013
Location: Siderno, Calabria, Italy.
Species: Bluntnose sixgill shark ( Hexanchus griseus ).
Size: said to be almost 2 m long, 80 kg in weight.

A record from the Ionian coast in southern Italy.
The dead specimen was found on a beach in Siderno.
Source and Photo Credit: MNews.IT

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Specimen No. 13

Date: 18. July 2013
Location: Wales, UK
Species: Shortfin mako shark ( Isurus oxyrinchus ).
Size: approx. 2 metres in length.

The male mako was caught and released by sport-fishermen in the waters of
Pembrokeshire county, about 30 miles off the coast of Milford Haven.
Source: BBC. Photo Credit: Andrew Griffith.

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Specimen No. 14

Date: 15. July 2013
Location: Dublin, Ireland.
Species: Basking shark ( Cetorhinus maximus ).
Size: not reported.

The decomposing carcass of the large specimen washed ashore on Dollymount Strand in north Dublin.
The dead creature had previously been spotted floating in the River Liffey where it was wrongly identified as a whale.
Source: Irish Times. Photo Credit: Leanne Walsh.

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Specimen No. 15

Date: reported on 15. July 2013
Location: Fethiye, Muğla Province,Turkey.
Species: Bigeye thresher shark (Alopias superciliosus).
Size: said to be 5 metres long, 95 kg in weight.

A record from the Aegean Region in south-western Turkey.
This specimen was caught in the offshore waters off  Yediburunlar
and later brought to a fishmonger in Fethiye .
Please see also Specimen No.16 below.
Source and Photo Credit: Haberciniz

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Specimen No. 16

Date: reported on 15. July 2013
Location: Fethiye, Muğla Province, Turkey.
Species: Shortfin mako shark ( Isurus oxyrinchus ).
Size: juvenile.

A fishmonger displayed this mako pup together with Specimen No.15.
No additional information available.
Source and Photo Credit: Haberciniz

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Specimen No. 17

Date: reported on 04. July 2013
Location: Kefalonia, Ionian Islands, Greece.
Species: Shortfin mako shark ( Isurus oxyrinchus ).
Size: newborn

A record from the Ionian Sea.
A commercial fisherman (longline) caught this mako shark pup
in the waters of Kefalonia, the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece.
Source and Photo Credit: Hellas Now.

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Specimen No. 18

Date: 02. July 2013
Location: Alboraya, Province of Valencia, Spain.
Species: Blue shark ( Prionace glauca )
Size: said to be almost 2 metres in length.

The sick and distressed animal was observed off the coast of Port Saplaya.
It was given a lethal injection by members of the Nature Protection Service (SEPRONA).
Source and Photo Credit: Las Provincias.

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Specimen No. 19

Date: 01. July 2013
Location: Agde, Hérault department, France.
Species: Thresher shark ( Alopias vulpinus ).
Size: said to be 130 kg in weight.

A record from the French Mediterranean Sea.
The female thresher shark got entangled in a fishing net in the waters near Brescou Fort,
which lies a few kilometres off Cap d’Agde.
Source and Photo Credit: Midi Libre.

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Specimen No. 20

Date:  30. June 2013
Location: Sicily, Italy.
Species: Blue shark ( Prionace glauca ).
Size: not reported.

The dead blue shark was found stranded by beachgoers in Mondello,
a small town near the city of Palermo.
Source and Photo Credit: Quotidiano di Ragusa.

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Specimen No. 21

Date: 17. June 2013
Location: Province of Crotone, Calabria, Italy.
Species: Bluntnose sixgill shark ( Hexanchus griseus ).
Size: said to be about 4 metres in length.

A record from the Crucoli comune in southern Italy ( on the shore of the Ionian Sea ).
Beachgoers found the carcass of the large sixgill shark in Torretta di Crucoli.
Source and Photo Credit: Crotone sul web.

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Specimen No. 22

Date: reported on 16. June 2013
Location: Haute-Corse, Corsica, France.
Species: Bluntnose sixgill shark ( Hexanchus griseus ).
Size: said to be nearly 3 metres long.

A record from the shores of the Bay of Saint Florent in northern Corsica.
The stranded (dead) specimen was found on the rocks near Lodu beach.
Source and Photo: Facebook.

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Specimen No. 23

Date: reported on 13. June 2013
Location: Famagusta, Cyprus.
Species: Bluntnose sixgill shark ( Hexanchus griseus ).
Size: said to be 3,20 metres in length, approx. 300 kg.

The specimen was caught on a fishing line off the east coast of Cyprus.
It was sold for 10 Turkish Lira ( ca. 5 US-Dollar ) per kilogram.
Source and Photo Credit: Gundem Kıbrıs Gazetesi.

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Specimen No. 24

Date: 01. June 2013
Location: Embiez Island, France.
Species: Blue shark ( Prionace glauca ).
Size: estimated 2 metres in length

The blue shark was sighted at the port of Embiez,
which is a French island in the Mediterranean Sea.
There is a short video of the specimen on YouTube here.
Source: nicematin. Photo Credit: Audrey Robbino

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Specimen No. 25

Date: 30. May 2013
Location: Xàbia, Alicante Province, Spain.
Species: Bluntnose sixgill shark ( Hexanchus griseus ).
Size: estimated to be 1.000 kg in weight.

A record from the western Mediterranean Sea.
Commercial fishermen from Dénia released the huge sixgill shark after
it had been caught in their fishing net.
A few hours later, the specimen was found dead in the nearby waters of Xàbia.
The carcass was towed to shore and disposed at the local landfill site.
Source and Photo Credit: Diario Informacion.

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Specimen No. 26

Date: 29. May 2013
Location: Fécamp, Haute-Normandie Region, France.
Species: Thresher shark ( Alopias vulpinus )
Size: approx. 200 kg in weight.

A record from the English Channel.
The male specimen was caught off Fécamp.
Source and Photo: Facebook.

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Specimen No. 27

Date: 29. May 2013
Location: Fécamp, Haute-Normandie Region, France.
Species: Thresher shark ( Alopias vulpinus )
Size: not reported.

A record from the English Channel.
The thresher shark was caught off Fécamp.
Source and Photo: Facebook.

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Specimen No. 28

Date: reported on 26. May 2013
Location: Iskenderun, Hatay Province, Turkey.
Species: Carcharhinus species,
probably a Sandbar shark ( Carcharhinus plumbeus ).
Size:       not reported.

A record from the Levantine Sea in the far south-eastern Turkish region.
The Requiem shark ( Genus Carcharhinus ) was caught with hook and line
by a small fishing boat  in the waters of the Gulf of İskenderun.
It’s most likely a specimen of Carcharhinus plumbeus ( Sandbar shark ).
Source and Photo: TRT Haber.

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Specimen No. 29

Date:  17. May 2013
Location: Plobannalec-Lesconil, Brittany, France.
Species: Basking shark ( Cetorhinus maximus ).
Size: 3,33 metres in length

A record from Brittany in north-western France.
The young male basker was brought to shore by a fisherman
who had unintentionally caught it in his fishing net.
Members of the APECS (L’Association Pour l’Etude et la Conservation des Sélaciens)
had the chance to examine the specimen.
Source and Photo Credit: Ouest-France.

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Specimen No. 30

Date: reported on 14. May 2013
Location: El-Kala, Algeria.
Species: Thresher shark ( Alopias vulpinus ).
Size: not reported , but adult specimen.

Misidentified as a basking shark by the source.
Source and Photo: Facebook.

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Specimen No. 31

Date: reported on 12. May 2013
Location: Northern Cyprus.
Species: Bigeye thresher shark ( Alopias superciliosus )
Size: said to be 5 metres in length and 400 kg in weight.

This enormous bigeye thresher was caught about 1 km off the harbor of Famagusta,
which is situated on the east coast of Northern Cyprus.
Source and Photo Credit: Haberkıbrıs.

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Specimen No. 32

Date:  reported on 09. May 2013
Location: Jijel, Algeria.
Species: Giant devil ray ( Mobula mobular )
Size: said to be 150 kg in weight.

Two fishermen caught this devil ray in the waters off Cavallo (El Aouana),
located in Jijel Province, Algeria.
Source and Photo: Facebook.

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Specimen No. 33

Date: reported on 02. May 2013
Location: Mallorca, Ballearic Islands, Spain.
Species: Bluntnose sixgill shark ( Hexanchus griseus ).
Size: approx. 5 metres long.

The large cow-shark was found dead ( already in a state of decomposition )
in the waters of  Port d’Andratx, located on the south-western coast of Mallorca Island.
Presumably a discarded bycatch.
Source and Photo Credit: Ultima Hora.

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Specimen No. 34

Date: reported on 20. April 2013
Location:  San Vito lo Capo, Sicily, Italy .
Species: Smalltooth sandtiger shark (Odontaspis ferox).
Size: said to be 500 kg in weight.

A record from north-western Sicily.
This large specimen of the rare smalltooth sandtiger died as bycatch
in a fishing net near San Vito lo Capo. The fisherman told the local media:
„It does not have a commercial value. I would have freed it if it was still alive,
even at the cost of cutting my entire fishing net.“
Source and Photo Credit:  tvio.

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Specimen No. 35

Date: reported on 14. April 2013
Location: Circeo, Italy
Species: Thresher shark ( Alopias vulpinus ).
Size: not reported, but large/adult specimen in published photo.

This fox shark was caught in the waters of San Felice Circeo,
located in the Lazio region of Italy.
Source and Photo Credit: Radio Luna.

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Specimen No. 36

Date: reported on 01. April 2013
Location: Tekirdağ Province, Turkey.
Species: Bluntnose sixgill shark ( Hexanchus griseus ).
Size: said to be 5 metres in length, 1 metre wide and 400 kg in weight.

A record from the Sea of Marmara.
This huge specimen was accidentally caught about 2 miles offshore
by commercial fisherman from Hoşköy.
The Turkish media misidentified it as a ‘ basking shark ‘.
Source and Photo Credit: Haber Pan.

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Specimen No. 37

Date: reported on 28. March 2013
Location: Tel Aviv, Israel.
Species: Carcharhinus species,
probably Bronze whaler shark ( Carcharhinus brachyurus ).
Size: said to be 150 kg in weight.

This shark was reportedly landed by a fisherman in the morning of March 28th at the port of Jaffa.
In my opinion, it’s most likely a specimen of Carcharhinus brachyurus (Bronze whaler or Copper shark).
Source and Photo Credit:  yaffa48

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Specimen No. 38

Date: reported on 23. March 2013
Location: Muğla Province, Turkey.
Species: Giant devil ray ( Mobula mobular )
Size: said to be 200 kg in weight and 2 metres tall.

A record from the the Aegean region of Turkey.
This devil ray got entangled in a fishing net off İçmesuyu and was brought to shore in Fethiye.
Source and Photo Credit: Konya ve Dunya.

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