Critically endangered Angelshark caught on camera in Cardigan Bay seabed
An underwater camera deployed by researchers at The Wildlife Trust of South & West Wales (WTSWW) caught the critically endangered Angelshark on the seabed along Cardigan Bay.
I i's the first time the species has been seen on film in the area since 2021.
'We were thrilled to record an Angelshark in Cardigan Bay, a rare and exciting encounter," Dr Sarah Perry, Marine Conservation and Research Manager at WTSWW, said.
"This sighting comes at a crucial time, as the Senedd and UK Government discuss a ban on bottom trawling in Marine Protected Areas.
"Our Dolphin Diet Detectives project, funded by the Welsh Government through the Nature Networks Fund, uses underwater cameras to reveal the incredible diversity of life on the seabed. These findings highlight the urgent need to protect these fragile habitats from damaging activities like bottom trawling."
The Baited Underwater Remote Video Systems (BRUVS) were deployed by a research team as part of the Dolphin Diet Detectives project, investigating dolphin diets and marine diversity in Cardigan Bay. The BRUVS were deployed in a range of habitats and left to record for just one hour at each location. The cameras have captured a huge range of wildlife both inside and outside of the protected areas, including Spider Crabs, Wrasse, and most recently an Angelshark.
Angelsharks are suffering significant declines as a result of fishing and habitat degradation. They live on the seabed where they are well camouflaged to ambush flatfishes, crustaceans and molluscs. But their bottom dwelling lifestyle makes them vulnerable to being caught in trawl nets, and along with their slow reproduction rate this puts them at a high risk of extinction.
The Wildlife Trusts says even Marine Protected Areas, of which there are 139 in Wales, are not yet fully protected from destructive fishing activities such as bottom trawling, where huge nets and chains are dragged along the ocean floor, bulldozing anything in their way.
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