Hutch

So as you all know, there's been a much higher incidence of shark attacks and sightings this season. I'm more keenly aware of it than some people because I not only surf in shark-prone waters, but I patrol the beach here too.

So anyway - local story - couple of fishermen caught a Bronze Whaler shark 100 metres off my local beach. Not a little one either - three metres long. So I'm thinking, that's a new one, we've had Great Whites and Hammerheads, now a Bronze Whaler.

So I decide to look up said shark online and about the fourth link down the page is entitled, "What does BRONZE WHALER SHARK taste like, what wines go well with it and read our suggested cooking methods." Never mind that the government classes them as high risk to humans, could you recommend a good vintage to go with it?

That information, in case you catch one - " The flavoursome flesh of shark can be accompanied by a wide array of wine styles, although young wines with citrusy, acidic features are best. For the roast angel shark recipe from Circa, The Prince in Melbourne, a sparkling style such as a pinot-chardonnay would enhance the flavours."

Geelong Gent

Thats the spirit

Any recommendations for Mako? or "G"rey Nurse

margy

Hi,

Were you patrolling the beach looking for damsels to save or sharks to capture?

Anyway a quick question for you - when I buy "shark" from the fish counter in Woolies what type of shark is it or does it vary??? Would love to know which species of the shark I was eating, maybe I'm weird like that, I don't need to know that it's name is Nigel and it had a good life or anything.

Another thing, since the fishermen (my sympathies) have reached their quota of fish and so can't catch as many thus increasing the fish stocks around the shores and encouraging the sharks in, why don't the shark quota's go up to compensate?

M

Grayling

Many species of Shark are totally protected and the bag limit for sharks has just been reduced to One in Queensland.

There are up to 5000 sharks in the Brisbane river at any one time in the summer.

G

homewardbound

Grey Nurses are def protected!

Grayling

Rightly so

homewardbound

Not sure there have been more 'sightings' this year... the news and reports from the surf lifesaving and public surfers have been that sightings have been as usual and expected.

Lenmil

I was talking to a woman who told me her son was out fishing in his boat 10k's out from shore here in Tassie. I never saw the video, but apparently a white pointer came along the boat and looked at them and then bashed his boat. What they do i asked? Pulled up their anchor and left quick. It was at least 3 metres. I can well belive this as i saw the pictures the last time. Seems sharks are getting closer to the beach all the time.

ponyrama

How rude! Someone should teach these sharks some manners!

Swerv-o

Did it also mention that shark meat is prone to high levels of mercury, and that eating too much can lead to poisoning?


S

Hutch

Dunno - but if sharks knew how many pollutants were swimming around inside the average human body I suspect they'd sooner gnaw on the leg of an oil rig.

Swerv-o

Hmmm. Maybe. I wonder what dolphin tastes like...


S

Geelong Gent

I didn't see any signs

Hutch

Indeed. And do pink ones have different flavour to the ordinary variety?

margy

Didn't know about the mercury levels in shark, had heard about this in salmon and assumed (probably wrongly) that this was due to the salmon being farmed and so were swimming in more polluted water.

As we are always told to eat more fish, what fish is good to eat which doesn't have high mercury levels? Surely if the mercury levels in the sea/ocean were increased as a whole then all fish/sharks would be affected?

Re the 3m shark bashing the boat, it might have thought the boat was a new potential mate and this was just friendly nudging, the equivalent of teenagers hitting the girl/guy they really fancy Or maybe the shark had had experience of boats in the past and knew that tasty things were inside, crikey!

M