Nets snare eight sharks

Eight sharks have been snared by nets set off Dunedin's beaches this summer.

The sharks were caught in six nets set in pairs off St Clair, St Kilda and Brighton beaches during December.

Dunedin City Council parks officer Renee Gordon said the sharks caught included five sevengills, one tope, one blue and one mako, the largest of which measured 2.4m.

Figures were collated at the end of each month, meaning January's tally was not yet known, she said.

The nets were in place each summer, from December to February, and on average caught about 21 sharks each season.

However, council figures showed the number of sharks caught last summer was above average, with 29 caught from December 2008 to the end of February 2009.

The council budgeted $36,200 each year to maintain three pairs of 100m-long nets at the beaches, which were set several hundred metres offshore and checked regularly by a contractor.

Windy weather in December had also resulted in tangled nets being damaged and replaced, a report by council community and recreation services manager Mick Reece said.

Add a Comment

 

Advertisement