Tagging elasmobranchs
In several of our groundfish surveys, Cefas scientists tag and release various species of dogfish, including spurdog, smoothhounds, tope and greater-spotted dogfish.
The tags used are Petersen discs, small plastic tags with a serial number on one disc (yellow) which is connected with a stainless steel wire through the dorsal fin, to another disc (red).
If you catch one of these tagged fish, please contact Cefas with recapture information, so that scientists can get more information on their movements, migrations, stock structure and longevity.
For information on other shark and ray tagging programmes, see:
Spurdog
In the 1960’s, spurdog was one of the most important commercial fish for UK fisheries, though their population has declined in recent years. Spurdog is one of the most important small sharks taken in UK commercial fisheries. Early tagging programmes tagged and released thousands of spurdog, and some of these tagged fish have been caught 40 years after release. Recently, spurdog have been released in the Irish and Celtic Seas.
Greater-spotted dogfish
Most greater-spotted dogfish have been released around the Welsh coastline, as this species is most common in Cardigan Bay, off the Lleyn Peninsula and off Anglesey. This large-bodied species (that may grow to 1.5 m in length) is a popular target for recreational anglers.
Smoothhounds
Two species of smoothhound occur in UK waters, the more common of which is the starry smoothhound. Smoothhounds are landed occasionally as by-catch, but are also important recreational species, especially along the south and west coasts of England and Wales.
Tope
Tope is one of our largest inshore sharks, and specimens of over 1.5 m are commonly taken. As with the related smoothhound, they are landed occasionally in commercial fisheries, but are also a highly-prized sport fish.
