SHARK ID

M

Marlinmoz

Sealiner
Hi Guys,
 
Wonder if anyone could help me identify this shark.
 
I caught it in about 65m of water off Bazaruto islands in southern Mozambique in late December. I have chartered on the archipelago for the last 9 straight years and we get a good number of shark species such as bull´s (zambeze´s), java (pigeye´s), tigers, dusky´s, blacktip´s, blackfin´s, scalloped & great hammerhead etc, etc…but it is the first time I have seen this one.
 
Unfortunately this is the only photo I have from it as it broke the mono leader when I tried to pick it up to take a photo of the jaw/teeth. I have looked and asked around and spinner shark, big nose shark etc come up but at closer look there is no way. To me the closest it comes to is a sandbar, but even then the pectorals seem to sharp and the snout way to pointy.
 
But the really odd scenario here is that I got it on a Marlin lure trolled at 7 knots…since mako´s are almost unheard of in these waters it is the first time I have caught a shark on a lure on Bazaruto.
 
We actually had a quadruple strike with the lure on the long rigger being one of the first to go. The other 3 fish were all YF between 22-35 lbs (10-15kg). I never did see the strike on the long but my 1[sup]st[/sup] Mate Alex told me he thought it was a small Marlin as there was a lot of trashing (and of course we never do expect a shark) on the strike. The fish fought very much like a small hammer with mid water dashes and then coming up close to the surface in two instances.
 
Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!!!
Cheers,
Duarte
 

Attachments

  • RB 1 093.JPG
    RB 1 093.JPG
    38.5 KB · Views: 284
M

Marlinmoz

Sealiner
The bronze shark was actually one of the first I looked into. They are often mistaken with dusky´s which we encounter quiet regularly up on the archipelago.
The think again is that looking into information and pictures of the bronzie, they have blunt broad snouts. The dorsal also seems to be higher on the shark I caught and to start mid way from the pectorals as opposed to the bronzie where it seems to start way behind.
I guess without a picture of tail, pelvic fins and mouth/teeth its actually going to be pretty difficult to ID it. What amazes me most is the fact that it took a plastic lure at 7 knots!!!
 
S

spin

Senior Member
Nice catch on lure lol, had a look at sandbar shark photos and they do share similar features. dorsal fin on the shark in the photo seems very sharp and narrow tipped unlike a bronzi.
 
M

Marlinmoz

Sealiner
I also think the same and what bothers me with the sandbar is this one got a long pointed snout as opposed to a short and rounded one.
It also shares quite a lot of similarities with a silky but again what mostly distinguishes a silky is its relatively small first dorsal fin which is almost like a equatorial triangle with a curve – which is of course very unlike this one…again the dorsal on the silk also starts way beyond the pectorals…and most silks I have seen have been in deep open water environments!
 
S

spin

Senior Member
Pity you could not get a better photo, this id is gonna bother me now. O well i will just keep searching.
 
M

Marlinmoz

Sealiner
Thanks for the replies guys,


Between this and another American forum I have had quite a few different opinions that cover a few sharks but the most predominant have been:


SPINNER SHARK              Carcharhinus brevipinna

COPPER SHARK (bronze whaler or narrowtooth shark)               Carcharhinus brachyurus

GALAPAGOS SHARK      Carcharhinus galapagensis

SANDBAR SHARK            Carcharhinus plumbeus

GREY REEF SHARK          Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos (grey reef shark)

DUSKY                                 Carcharhinus obscures


I AM CONFUSED!!!!


The Galapagos makes kind of sense as it looks similar and they are known to go for lures, which for me is the biggest mystery on this one. They are known to be misidentified with dusky´s which we do see a lot..so that one is high on my list.


Next up, on the probable list for me, is the spinner and then the copper….


 BUT I DON´T KNOW…HOPE TO GET ANOTHER ONE & BETTER PICS!!!


Sharks can be seriously difficult. As a lot of you probably know bazaruto as a very high population of zambeze´s. Then a few years back I started noticing some slight changes in between ALL the Zambeze´s I was releasing, so started to take pics and doing some research and actually some of them are JAVA (pigeye) SHARKS, but they are indeed very similar!!!


Cheers
 
G

Glenn

Sealiner
Great catch!

It look's like a mix of Sandbar/Spinner shark! Maybe the 2 shark's have bread together?? :sha
 
M

MickJack

Senior Member
I'm almost certain it's a Sandbar. Only thing is they are bottom feeders/dwellers, so quite strange that it took a surface lure! Also, I'm not sure if bronzies venture as high up as Moz, but I stand to be corrected.

Cheers
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top