Well deserved support has come to the energetic Scottish Sea Angling Conservation Network (SSACN). It has been awarded a funding package worth £52,000 to help support its initiative in gathering data on species of sharks, skates and rays found in Scottish waters. Many of these species are now endangered.

The funding comes from Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) and the Argyll and the Islands LEADER Programme. It will be used to employ a Shark Project Officer who will work with SSACN to develop the successful Scottish Shark Tagging Programme (SSTP)  which attracted nationwide media attention in its spectacular Solway Firth Sharkatag, earlier this year.

The objectives of the programme are to :

• Record data on shark, skate and ray species
• Increase public awareness
• Highlight the need for species protectio
• Encourage use of “codes of best practice”
• Showcase conservation methods and efforts

Project Director Ian Burrett says that ‘SSACN has long campaigned for programmes aimed at regenerating the stocks of Scotland’s sharks. Unfortunately the government and fisheries managers say they are unable to act as they say they lack the necessary scientific data and have no programme in place to gather it.

‘Thanks to our funding partners and the many anglers who support our efforts, we’ll be gathering that data for them’.

Tagging is the only non-destructive means of gathering the necessary data. It will be undertaken by volunteer sea anglers – fishing from the shore, kayaks or boats – who will catch, tag and release various shark, skate and ray species, either as part of their normal fishing trips or during major tagging events coordinated by the Shark Project Officer and SSACN.

For Argyll reported on the Solway Firth Sharkatag and the photographs we published say it all about the scale, the inventiveness, the team effort, the fun and the value of such as event. We couldn’t believe it when we say two of the sea anglers setting out to tag Tope, Porbeagle, Smoothhound, Skate and Ray in (bright yellow) sea kayaks.

The duties of the Shark Project Officer will also include arranging training workshops for anglers and raising awareness of Scottish sharks, skates and rays by liaising with fishermen, and visiting schools in Argyll.

Young people here will benefit a lot from first hand information on what swims familiar waters and from learning about the risks these species face.

Jane Dodd, SNH Marine Project Officer for Argyll and Stirling said: ‘We are hoping to recruit a dynamic project officer to lead this exciting project. Someone with project management skills and at least an interest in sea angling and a willingness to do some boat based field work.  Quite an unusual range of skills to be found in a single person but we have our fingers crossed that he or she is out there!

‘Anyone interested in applying should visit the SNH website’.

Related Posts

• Nationwide participation in Scotland’s greatest ever shark tagging event (0)
• Scottish Sea Angling Conservation Network AGM, Loch Lomond (0)
• Major publicity coup for Scottish Sea Angling Conservation Network (0)
• Scottish Shark Tagging Programme launched – sea anglers invited to take part (0)
• SSACN success as shark tagging officer gets his skates on in Oban (0)

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