Tagging elasmobranchs
In several of our groundfish surveys, Cefas scientists tag and
release various species of dogfish, including spurdog,
smoothhounds, tope and greater-spotted dogfish.
The tags used are Petersen discs, small plastic tags with a
serial number on one disc (yellow) which is connected with a
stainless steel wire through the dorsal fin, to another disc
(red).
If you catch one of these tagged fish, please contact Cefas with
recapture information, so that scientists can get more information
on their movements, migrations, stock structure and longevity.
For information on other shark and ray tagging programmes,
see:
Spurdog
In the 1960's, spurdog was one of the most important commercial
fish for UK fisheries, though their population has declined in
recent years. Spurdog is one of the most important small sharks
taken in UK commercial fisheries. Early tagging programmes tagged
and released thousands of spurdog, and some of these tagged fish
have been caught 40 years after release. Recently, spurdog have
been released in the Irish and Celtic Seas.
Greater-spotted dogfish
Most greater-spotted dogfish have been released around the Welsh
coastline, as this species is most common in Cardigan Bay, off the
Lleyn Peninsula and off Anglesey. This large-bodied species (that
may grow to 1.5 m in length) is a popular target for recreational
anglers.
Smoothhounds
Two species of smoothhound occur in UK waters, the more common
of which is the starry smoothhound. Smoothhounds are landed
occasionally as by-catch, but are also important recreational
species, especially along the south and west coasts of England and
Wales.
Tope
Tope is one of our largest inshore sharks, and specimens of over
1.5 m are commonly taken. As with the related smoothhound, they are
landed occasionally in commercial fisheries, but are also a
highly-prized sport fish.
