Shark Hub UK

Anglers and scientists, together as equals, for sharks.

Never has there been a more exciting time for UK shark science. We are encountering more and more top predators in our waters opening up a range of possibilities to learn more about these incredible animals. Providing the wealth of practical knowledge and insight into shark activity in the UK that recreational shark anglers possess and using the skills and analytical tools available to our scientific team we are seeking to secure a sustainable future for both sharks and shark angling in the UK.

How does Shark Hub UK Aim to Do This?

Angling for Science

Through combining the knowledge and skills of recreational shark anglers and marine researchers we are working together to achieve the following shared objectives and to improve both the protection and management of UK shark species.

Advocate the importance of knowledge and data gathered by the recreational angling community
Provide shark anglers with the best resources and information on shark biology, ecology and conservation
Supporting the recreational shark angling community with its development and ongoing review of shark angling and handling best practice
Engage with and make the sport and shark science more accessible to, a diverse range of people to improve participation, including those from vulnerable communities and disadvantaged socio-economic groups
Better understand the distribution, abundance, ecology and movement patterns of UK shark species
Contribute to national and international shark management
Provide evidence to relevant management bodies to reduce the overexploitation of sharks
Generate public education and awareness of UK sharks and the value of recreational shark anglers to shark conservation

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Shark Handling Guides

Best Practice for Best Post-Release Survival

SCBI Shark Handling Guide SACB Best Practice Handling Guide

There are occasions where boarding smaller shark may be necessary for the safety of both the fish and angler, and the guidelines include instructions on how to safely do so. However, this is non-trivial and is best attempted by those experienced in shark handling.

Shark Hub UK will also be releasing a best-practice handling guide in due course.

Get Involved

Shark Angling Survey

Are you a UK-based shark angler?

Whether you target big or small sharks, we want to hear from you! The aims of the survey are to describe the UK recreational shark fishery, get input from recreational sea anglers on their views of the current status of UK sharks, identify current shark handling practices and understand angler perceptions of and participation in shark research schemes.

Porbeagle Point of Capture Database

Are you a UK-based private boat owner?

This database is only available for entries from private boat owners. If you are a charter skipper and wish to supply shark point of capture data, please contact the Shark Angling Club of Great Britain or John McMaster to contribute to the Pat Smith Database. It is anticipated that the data collected will be used to analyse trends over time and relationships with environmental variables, as well as to contribute to the international management body, ICCAT (International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas), to safeguard porbeagle sharks against future commercial overexploitation. Data collected will also be used to publish scientific papers on porbeagle sharks by Shark Hub UK members.

Return of the Blue Shark

with Dr. Simon Thomas

Simon talks about the annual migrations of the Blue Shark, a fish that can cover more than 3000 miles in a year and how commercial exploitation decimated the species. But he also presents on how information gathered by anglers shows a more hopeful picture of potential stock recovery and environmental changes have combined to result in large numbers of these magnificent fish returning to our waters in recent years.

Porbeagles & UK Shark Angling

with Dr. Georgia Jones & Dr. Bryce Stewart

Dr. Georgia Jones discusses her research on UK porbeagles and introduces with Dr. Bryce Stewaty a new collaborative partnership with the Angling Trust and Shark Angling Club of Great Britain a new survey for recreational sea anglers targeting all UK shark species.

Sharks in Ocean Ecosystems & Their Physiology in an Angling Context

with Dr. Georgia Jones

Sharks perform a number of vital functions in our oceans like marine ecosystems in balance and ensuring species diversity by predating on weaker individuals. This forum looks in the first section at some case studies of different shark species performing these functions around the world. In the second section, we take a look at the unique anatomy and physiology of sharks and how this relates to angling and handling.

Shark Handling for Anglers

with Dr. Simon Thomas

Simon explores the practicalities of angling for sharks and how we can ensure that as many of the fish we return can both survive and thrive. Based on the shark handling guides of the Shark Angling Club of Great Britain, the Sportfishing Club of the British Isles and Simon’s personal experience from releasing over 4200 sharks, Simon explains how we can ensure that both the methods we use to catch sharks and how we handle them when releasing them can maximise the survival of the fish we catch, thus doing our part to ensure the future of the sport.

Meet the Team

Dr. Georgia Jones

Bournemouth University

Georgia has worked on sharks for the last 10 years, conducting research projects on several species around the world and gaining a PhD on great white ecology. Her research has included Protected Area design, movement analysis through acoustic tracking and species distribution modelling. Her main focus now is trophic ecology, using stable isotopes and fatty acids from shark tissue to understand diet, habitat use and movement patterns within and between species. In 2015 she founded a charity with a focus on public education and research on UK sharks. Georgia is now a Senior Lecturer at Bournemouth University, dedicated to working with the recreational shark angling community to better understand and help manage sharks around the British Isles.

Hannah Rudd

Angling Trust

Hannah is the Policy & Advocacy Manager for the Angling Trust, with a MSc Marine Environmental Management from the University of York where her research focused on whale sharks and great white sharks. Hannah is passionate about shark research and the goals of Shark Hub UK, with international experience of working with a variety of species under her belt. She is excited to be working with the recreational shark angling community in the UK to better understand UK sharks and to inform their management, whilst also highlighting the role shark anglers can play in securing a brighter future for not only sharks but the entire marine environment.

Dr. Simon Thomas

SACGB & SCBI

Simon has been a fanatical angler since an early age and is the honorary biologist for both the Shark Angling Club of Great Britain and the Sportfishing Club of the British Isles. Through this work and independent data collection he has co-founded the Pat Smith data base with John McMaster, which is the second largest and longest database of blue shark captures in the world. His research aims to better inform decisions by global policymakers on shark conservation, highlight the role played by anglers in collecting the required information and to link changes in UK blue shark populations with large scale environmental drivers. Simon promotes the utilisation of the knowledge possessed by the anglers and skippers, who are often the real experts in the shark species.

Steve Murphy

SCBI, Bluefin Tuna UK & Angling Trust Conservation Group

Steve began his sea angling adventures off the Essex coast in the early 1980s with Bob Cox and John Rawle who were revolutionising inshore sea Angling with their new uptiding technique. Atlantic Bluefin Tuna have in recent years become a major focus of Steve including the pursuit of a sustainable, scientifically supported recreational fishery in the U.K. He is founder of the Bluefin Tuna UK Campaign and is also Conservation officer for the Sportfishing Club of the British Isles. Steve was the lead RSA representative in the six-month long consultation with DEFRA that led to the English CHART program approval for autumn 2021.

Dr. Bryce Stewart

University of York

Bryce is an Australian marine ecologist and fisheries biologist who moved to the UK in 1999. He did his PhD on predatory coral reef fish on the Great Barrier Reef and is now based at the University of York where he is a Senior Lecturer. The central goal of his research has been to better understand the factors regulating marine populations and ecosystems, so as to ensure their conservation and sustainable utilisation. Bryce is delighted to now be working with recreational anglers, who are key stakeholders that have so much knowledge to offer to science and conservation.

Dr. Paul Somerfield

Plymouth Marine Laboratory

Paul undertakes scientific research and disseminates information through peer reviewed papers, reports, training, student supervision and other means. He has authored and co-authored >140 peer-reviewed papers (ISI h-score 44) and >10 books and book chapters. His research investigates the distribution and functioning of biodiversity, particularly through the novel integration and analysis of compiled data to understand large-scale and long-term processes, and their implications for the ways in which we understand and model systems. He is Theme Leader for Biological Dynamics within the national capability programme Climate Linked Atlantic Sector Science (CLASS). He was science coordinator and lead PI of the UK Marine Ecosystems Research Programme.

Bite Blog

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25 June 2021

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Campaigns

12 March 2021

Survey for recreational sea anglers targeting…

Through a new collaborative partnership with the Angling Trust, Shark Angling Club of Great Britain…

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