WEB DESK: Hundreds of sharks and rays are dying after getting tangled in drifting “ghost nets” and plastic waste, according to new research.
However, scientists have warned that the true number could be far higher.
Entanglement, mostly involving lost or discarded fishing gear, is a “far lesser threat” to sharks and rays than commercial fishing, but the suffering it causes is a major animal welfare concern, the study by a research team from the University of Exeter said.
The scientists scoured existing published studies and Twitter for shark and ray entanglements.
They found reports of more than 1,000 incidents but warned few studies have focussed on plastic entanglement among shark and rays, indicating the real number of entanglements could be significantly larger.
The review of academic papers found reports of 557 sharks and rays entangled in plastic, spanning 34 species in oceans including the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian. Almost 60 per cent of these animals were either lesser spotted dogfish, spotted ratfish or spiny dogfish.
On Twitter, the researchers found 74 entanglement reports involving 559 individual sharks and rays from 26 species including whale sharks, great whites, tiger sharks and basking sharks.
Both data sources suggested “ghost” fishing gear (nets, lines and other equipment lost or abandoned) were by far the most common entangling objects. Other items included strapping bands used in packaging, polythene bags and rubber tyres.
