The rare sight of an angel shark has been captured on an underwater camera deployed in Cardigan Bay by the Wildlife Trust of South & West Wales (WTSWW). It is the first such sighting for four years.
Angel sharks are Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Often associated by UK divers with the Canary Islands, where observations are more likely to occur, they grow up to 2m long and behave like rays by lying camouflaged in sand to ambush passing prey, such as flatfish, crustaceans and molluscs.
This behaviour leaves them vulnerable to bottom-trawling, with their slow reproduction rate also contributing to a concerning decrease in their numbers.
Divernet reported yesterday (26 July) on how Cornwall Wildlife Trust is celebrating National Marine Week, which has as its 2025 theme “the seabed beneath the waves”. WTSWW’s seabed shark observation is an appropriate opener for its own contributions to the annual event.
The shark was recorded by a Baited Underwater Remote Video System (BRUVS) deployed by the trust through its Cardigan Bay Marine Wildlife Centre, where a team is researching dolphin diets and marine diversity in the area. Cameras were placed in various habitats in and outside Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), recording for one hour at each location.
The 139 designated MPAs in Wales are not fully protected from bottom-trawling, says the WTSWW.
Describing the observation as “a rare and exciting encounter”, trust marine conservation & research manager Dr Sarah Perry said that it had come at a crucial moment, as the Welsh parliament discusses banning bottom-trawling in MPAs with the UK government.
“Our Dolphin Diet Detectives project, funded by the Welsh government through the Nature Networks Fund, uses underwater cameras to reveal the incredible diversity of life on the seabed,” said Perry.
“These findings highlight the urgent need to protect these fragile habitats from damaging activities like bottom-trawling.” The trust is seeking more signatures to its petition to stop the practice.
Also on Divernet: HARD-HITTING ATTENBOROUGH FILM CONDEMNS MPA TRAWLING, DIVER THEO JOINS STEPHEN FRY TO SKEWER BOTTOM-TRAWLING, 5 WAYS TO IMPROVE MARINE CONSERVATION AROUND BRITAIN