A proliferation of small sharks in the shore-based Natal sport fishery

Abstract

Twenty-one years of catch returns from the shore-based Natal sport fishery have been processed in order to detect trends in the composition of anglers' catches. Results presented indicate that there have been substantial changes, especially following a much increased abundance of juvenile sharks in the last decade. It is postulated that the most likely cause for this proliferation is the removal of large predatory sharks through protective gill netting.