UKDIVING
completed over the next five years to work towards a joint vision of a thriving population of angel sharks in Wales . After researching the species for the last three years as the Project Coordinator , it was incredible to be able to capture the first underwater footage off the Welsh coast as well as the wider UK . It was truly an unforgettable experience to be sitting on the seafloor off the coast where I spend the majority of my diving watching a species that ’ s listed globally as Critically Endangered .
The encounter has significant importance for the species off the Welsh coast , not least because of the size of this particular shark .
Its size of 30cm , along with white markings on the edges of its dorsal fin , show that it was born this year , which provides further evidence that there is a breeding population of angel sharks off our coast .
This is important for the species , as it suggests Wales may host one of the last angel shark populations in the northernmost extent of their range . Hopefully the dive wasn ’ t a once-in-alifetime experience , though . I ’ d like to think it ’ s the first step in a new understanding of an elusive animal . I am looking forward to spending more time underwater with this remarkable and evolutionary distinct species . �
Angels on the edge
Measuring up to 2.4m the angel shark , Squatina squatina , is a species of shark once widespread in the coastal waters of the northeastern Atlantic . Well-adapted for camouflaging itself on the sea floor , the angel shark has a flattened form with enlarged pectoral and pelvic fins , giving it a superficial resemblance to a ray . Like other members of its family , it is a nocturnal ambush predator that buries itself in sediment and waits for passing prey . Since the mid-20th century , intense commercial fishing across the angel shark ’ s range has decimated its population as a result of bycatch – it is now locally extinct , or nearly so across most of its northern range , and the prospects of the remaining subpopulations such as Cardigan Bay are made more precarious by its slow rate of reproduction . As a result , the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed the species as being Critically Endangered . There are 24 different types of angel shark found all over the temperate and tropical seas , but they are all vulnerable to gillnets and other commercial fishing techniques . One of the last places to see Squatina squatina in abundance is the Canary Islands , where they can be found resting on the sandy substrate . For now , they are reconfirmed as a genuine shark of British seas , alongside basking sharks , blues , porbeagles , smooth hounds , tope and cat sharks .
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