Over the years, On The Water has covered some unfortunate and unforgettable stories that were made public by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC)—one of the most astonishing being an opossum-eating striper poacher on the Hudson River. But earlier today, while skimming the DEC’s most recent edition of Environmental Police on Patrol, I was even more surprised by a photo of New York ECO Broughton displaying the detached tail of a sand tiger shark—a federally-protected shark species.
According to the Atlantic Shark Institute, sand tiger sharks have a wide distribution, populating “warm temperate to tropical coastal seas except the central and eastern Pacific.” Due to combined factors including their vast range, slow growth and reproduction rates, and historic population declines due to overfishing and habitat loss, they were classified as a Species of Concern by NOAA Fisheries in 2004. Due to that designation, sand tigers are listed as a prohibited shark species in New York and other coastal states where recreational anglers may encounter them.
In New York, prohibited shark species—of which there are many—are illegal to pursue, capture, kill, or possess. Most law-abiding anglers that fish from Long Island’s south shore beaches each summer understand that sand tiger sharks, when caught, are not to be removed from the water and must be released immediately. But this angler decided to harvest the sand tiger shark they caught right then and there.
Thankfully, ECO Broughton was in the area to respond to reports of the illegal harvest, issue a ticket to the angler, and confiscate the remains.
This is a sad and unfortunate outcome for the shark, but it’s a good reminder to report fishing violations/incidents to the 24/7 DEC Dispatch Center or contact an ECO in your region.
Read the excerpt from NYSDEC below, or click here for the full press release.
Illegal Shark Catch – Queens County
On July 18, ECO Broughton responded to Rockaway Park in Queens County for reports of an illegal harvest of a sand tiger shark, a prohibited recreational species in New York State. Officer Broughton responded to the location and observed the subject already in the skinning process. He confiscated the shark remains to keep as evidence and ticketed the individual for the illegal take of a prohibited recreational species, returnable to Queens County Court. Sand tiger sharks are a U.S. Species of Concern because of their historical population declines, and because they have slow growth, late maturity, and produce few young. New York State and DEC remain committed to upholding State regulations that protect them.
To contact an ECO to report an environmental crime or incident, call 1-844-DEC-ECOS for 24-hour dispatch.
