-
Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.
Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
Basking shark washed up on Brora beach (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter GeorgeMac
- Start date
Looks like it has been at sea a fair while but it would be worth contacting these folks.
https://ukstrandings.org/
https://ukstrandings.org/
If you're on Twitter, Darren Naish would be interested in these images. @TetZoo
Nutcracker
Stop Brexit!
Ship propeller collision? Needn't be delibeate killing. Or are you worried they are being targeted for the fin trade?
Dunno N. The last one I thought perhaps it had become tangled up in a net and some pissed off fishermen had cut its tail off so it wouldn't do it again. This one has its head mashed in. I guess a ship's propeller could do that kind of damage for sure. Good observation! I'm not on twitter, or any social media for that matter.
Nutcracker
Stop Brexit!
As with any shark, there's likely to be a black market for the fins (including the tail fin) for selling to east Asia. How serious it is in this part of the world, I don't know. It's very bad in the Pacific, etc.
Yep, basking shark fins are big bucks. Here's an excerpt from a report on the problem.
‘The demand for basking shark fins, which can fetch prices in excess of $50,000 (USD) for a single large
fin, is continuing to drive the exploitation, surreptitious and otherwise, of this highly threatened species,’
says Mahmood Shivji, Ph.D., director of the Guy Harvey Research Institute (GHRI), who led the research
group. ‘This finding, along with our recent research documenting extremely low genetic diversity in
basking sharks worldwide, raises urgent concerns about the longer-term health of this species.’
‘The demand for basking shark fins, which can fetch prices in excess of $50,000 (USD) for a single large
fin, is continuing to drive the exploitation, surreptitious and otherwise, of this highly threatened species,’
says Mahmood Shivji, Ph.D., director of the Guy Harvey Research Institute (GHRI), who led the research
group. ‘This finding, along with our recent research documenting extremely low genetic diversity in
basking sharks worldwide, raises urgent concerns about the longer-term health of this species.’
Gill Osborne
Well-known member
:-C Christ is there NOTHING that isn't safe from the cancer that is the human race! :storm: Absolutely heartbreaking :-C
A bowl of shark fin soup can cost upwards of £100 per bowl. 10 basking sharks are probably worth around $1 million just for their fins. The key to solving this problem could be quite simple. Education. Apparently eating shark fin soup is unhealthy and even dangerous, because they contain BMAA. If people knew this, they wouldn't eat it.
BMAA has been linked to neurogenerative diseases like Alzheimer's disease and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). Eating shark fins can increase human exposure to the toxin. So while shark fin soup may appear to be an extraordinary dish to indulge in on a special occasion, it is definitely dangerous.
β-Methylamino-l-alanine, or BMAA, is a non-proteinogenic amino acid produced by cyanobacteria. BMAA is a neurotoxin and its potential role in various neurodegenerative disorders is the subject of scientific research. There may even be mercury and other poisons in the fins of sharks.
Education is the way forward here.
BMAA has been linked to neurogenerative diseases like Alzheimer's disease and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). Eating shark fins can increase human exposure to the toxin. So while shark fin soup may appear to be an extraordinary dish to indulge in on a special occasion, it is definitely dangerous.
β-Methylamino-l-alanine, or BMAA, is a non-proteinogenic amino acid produced by cyanobacteria. BMAA is a neurotoxin and its potential role in various neurodegenerative disorders is the subject of scientific research. There may even be mercury and other poisons in the fins of sharks.
Education is the way forward here.
dantheman
Bah humbug
Think the two are inextricably intertwined. Good luck disentangling them!
With 7 billion humans on the planet there will be plenty of grief we cause other species, even if everything we did was a lot better than it is now. Love of money makes a lot of things worse, though agreed.
The phrase 'a cancer' does not specifically mean you are a part of a disease (it has a wider meaning).
StuartReeves
Local rarity
I don't think you can conclude a lot from this carcass given how decomposed it is. If it had been properly finned, then the pectoral fins would have been cut-off as well as the dorsal, and only the lower part of the tail would have been removed - see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shark_finning . Similarly, it seems unlikely that the previous one, where the tail had been removed, would have been left with the other fins intact. It seems much more likely that the that individual had been entangled in someone's net then the fishermen cut' its tail off to get it out.
Nutcracker
Stop Brexit!
Could be a propeller gash on its back there?
Hey Dan, I've been thinking much about your comment about being inextricably entwined for the last couple of days. Yeah, I think I can separate them. Here's how I've done it.
People are people.
Cancer is a disease.
People can catch cancer.
Cancer is the disease, not the people.
People can be cured of cancer.
People are people.
Greed is a disease.
People can become infected with greed.
Greed is the disease, not the people.
People can be cured of greed.
Mind you, they would have to resign from the freemasons or they would have no chance.
People are people.
Cancer is a disease.
People can catch cancer.
Cancer is the disease, not the people.
People can be cured of cancer.
People are people.
Greed is a disease.
People can become infected with greed.
Greed is the disease, not the people.
People can be cured of greed.
Mind you, they would have to resign from the freemasons or they would have no chance.
Last edited:
Nutcracker
Stop Brexit!
Even if they're just swimming normally, slow as per usual, they'll not be able to get out of the way of a container ship or similar going at 15+ knots. Ship strike is a common cause of death for whales, particularly the slower-moving species like Right Whales but even fast-swimming species like Fin and Blue Whales :-C
https://www.mmc.gov/wp-content/uploads/shipstrike.pdf
https://www.mmc.gov/priority-topics/species-of-concern/north-atlantic-right-whale/ship-strikes/
https://www.theguardian.com/environ...-barrier-reef-whale-zones-deadly-ship-strikes (warning: graphic pic)
Lots more awful pics: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=whale+ship+strike&t=ffsb&iar=images&iax=images&ia=images
