(Government of Jersey Marine Reso via SWNS)
By Lauren Beavis
A massive rare shark usually found in warm waters has washed up in the English Channel.
The animal, believed to be a Smalltooth sand tiger shark (Odontaspis ferox) is 600kg and 430cm, in length.
They are usually found in the Bay of Biscay south to Morocco, including the Mediterranean Sea, the Azores, and the Canary Islands.
It washed up alive on Greve D'Azette beach, in St. Clement on Jersey in the Channel Islands on June 7.
It is a rare and endangered species which has only been recorded in the UK a handful of times.
(Government of Jersey Marine Reso via SWNS)
Authorities say it is the first time the species has been found in Jersey since records began.
Jersey Coastguard, the British Divers Marine Life Rescue and Marine Resources attended and while the shark was showing small signs of life, it was unable to be revived.
The incoming tide then took the shark away until the next day, June 8, when the shark washed up again.
A postmortem, carried out by New Era vets, showed no obvious signs to the cause of its death.
The shark showed no signs of fisheries interaction or entanglement.
The Government of Jersey Marine Resources said identification is "yet to be confirmed through DNA analysis."
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.