I’m looking after my folks place plus dog at the mo’, been taking dog to the beach. Last night I noticed dozens and dozens of freshly dead dogfish washed up on the high tide mark. What’s that all about?, a bit unusual?They were still there tonight. All I can think of is they were mashed up on the concrete sea defenses built to protect the place from the Irish Sea on a big thrashing tide. But why no other fish? Is there any other explaination? I don’t recall this before, and I hang about on beaches quite often. Also, dead dogfish look really wierd, they have some sorta eyelid that gives them a strange humanlike quality when they are dead.

hmm, rock salmon……

the first thoughts in my head was, how dead are these? can I eat ’em?

I’ve only come across the odd washed up dogfish down here in South Devon. Massacring conger eels is much more popular….

Dumped from fishing boat?

Bloody hell slugwash have you never heard of Immac?

beach fishermen treat them as pests as they go for all bait. I answered this same question just last week on tz-uk:

http://www.tz-uk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=137373

tiggs, That was my first thought, apart from some kinda fishy cult suicidal pact.

Commercial fishermen class them as ‘by-catch’ and simply throw them back as they have no or little value to them as they are caught in nets sometimes in great numbers many die and will wash up on the shores.

The eye lid is a protective covering to prevent food stuffs getting in their eye during their frenzied feeding techniques.

Yet another case of wasteful throw away society. 🙁
The gulls and carrion will have a pop at them but they’re skin takes some getting through.

well. I suspected it was something as human as that. I too think it is a massive waste. The shore, washing stuff up, is a shop! if you get there at the right time. Cheers Sharki.

Nice poached,in a fish pie mixed with a little haddock/cod or in a fish cake.

And no bones either.

That’s EU fishing conservation rules designed to conserve fishing stocks for you. Has the backing of scientists don’tcha know.

It’s wasted, cos how do I know that’s fresh and useful? Honestly!

I remember seeing loads of dead ‘uns at Dungeness. Along with some other weird stuff.

Sad really. Type of shark, innit?

Bloody commercial fishing.

Kevevs, yes wasted!

How do you massacre conger eels? I thought they hid in rocks fairly deep down (and only came out to eat passing humans!)?

yeah its a type of shark, pretty easy to catch along the south coast but make sure you know what your doing when unhooking them, they have a habit of wrapping their tails around your arm and its like extra-rough sandpaper trying to get them off.

That’s EU fishing conservation rules designed to conserve fishing stocks for you. Has the backing of scientists don’tcha know.

The much maligned fisheries policy isn’t as bad as the meeja makes out. If it wasn’t there then fishermen wouldn’t waste fish by throwing them back, they’d just fish much more, the net result being cheep fish in the supermarkets, lots of rotting fish in the supermarkets as the market just isnt big enough, just as many fishermen out of business, and no fish in the sea.

Dogfish wouldnt be thrown back as a result of EU policy, they’re thrown back because no one wants to eat them, so no point landing them!