Story By: Ana Marjanovic, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
Video Credit: CEN/@marko.sola.5
This is the huge shark which according to a fisherman’s measurements is the biggest and heaviest of its species ever caught after it was found off the coast of a British tourist hotspot.
The huge bluntnose sixgill shark (Hexanchus griseus) was caught off the historic city of Sibenik located in central Dalmatia, on the coastline of the Adriatic Sea and could be the largest of its kind ever caught.
Local fishermen Marin Salov and Marko Sola were very surprised to find the huge shark in their net and took snaps of the animal before releasing it back into the ocean, as they are required to by law.
The images show the huge shark in the fishing boat.
Fisherman Sola told Central European News (CEN): “The shark was caught at a depth of 220 meters it was 5.7 meters long and weighs 700 kg (1,543 lbs). The shark was caught outside Rogoznica with a fishing boat in a net that is towed along the bottom of the sea. And yes she was really pregnant.”
National Geographic marine biologist and oceanographer Andrej A. Gajic stated for Central European News (CEN): “The largest to date, scientifically published, measured 482 centimetres and weighed just under 600 kilogrammes (1,322 lbs).
Profesor Gajic added to CEN: “If there was an accurate measurement that indicated 570 centimetres and 700 kilogrammes, It certainly would be one of the largest recorded individuals in the world.”
According to the fisherman, the shark in the video was pregnant. Bluntnose sixgill sharks reach sexual maturity very late, females from 18 to 35 years, and can carry a large number of offspring, which after birth measure 60 to 75 centimeters.
Peru Ugarkovic, an Associate of the Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries told reporters: “It is not dangerous, it’s a deep-sea species. They rarely appear in shallow waters, mostly at night. Sometimes there are encounters with divers, several of which were recorded in the Adriatic, the last time in Kvarner.
“Those caught on camera are generally smaller because when they grow they stay out of the light. This species lives in all the world’s seas. In the Mediterranean, as well as in the Adriatic, it is occasionally caught by fisherman’s nets, by accident. “
He added that it was a great effort to return the huge shark to the water but they managed to do so.
The bluntnose sixgill shark is the largest of the most primitive types of sharks, growing up to 26 feet (8 meters) in length. It is found in tropical and temperate waters worldwide and its diet is widely varied by region.
This particular species of shark is known for its “attacks” on optical Google cables that are lined up along deep-sea expanses.
It is capable of attaining high speeds for chasing and catching its prey which includes fish, rays, squid, crabs, seals, and other sharks. Despite its size, it is harmless to humans unless provoked.
The bluntnose sixgill shark is listed as Near Threatened by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.
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