Welcome to the SSTP

SSTPtransp

Welcome to the SSTP

The SSTP is part of the Scottish Sea Angling Conservation Network (SSACN – www.ssacn.org).

Our aim is to tag and record data on many of the shark, skate and ray species found in Scottish coastal waters.

Tagging is a non-destructive method of gathering much needed data regarding species migrations,growth rates, population, stock make-up and fluctuations.

We work in partnership with government agencies, conservation NGOs and academic institutions to provide a focal point for shark research in Scotland.

Tagger of the month

DaleTagger of the month – July 2010

Dale Robertson

49 fish tagged and 3 fish recaptured

Dale also reached GOLD CAP status.

202 fish were tagged and logged onto the SSTP database this month

Previous Taggers of the Month: Hall of Fame

A list of Bronze, Silver and Gold cap holders may be found here.

Tagging guidelines
SSACN Guidelines
ssacn tope handling best practice SSACN small shark best practice SSACN plastic dart tagging guidelines
Tope handling – best practice Small shark handling – best practice Plastic dart tagging guidelines
Basic Handling

If possible, release without taking out of the water.

Shark skin can cause painful abraisons so hold firmly.

Have all equipment to hand to minimise time out of water.

Support the fish’s abdomen – sharks have no ribcage.

A towel soaked in sea water placed over its head usually pacifies a fish.

Hold the fishes head into the tide to get oxygen back into its gills when releasing.

Once the shark starts to kick – release it.

shark bite


    Shark Bites

The Islay tope festival

The Islay Tope Festival was a huge success with over 70 anglers attending the weekend out of Bowmore. 11 tope were tagged and released as well as many that 'got away!'. Read the full story under anglers yarns for more information. You can read more about the festival here. Related posts:Islay Tope Festival 2010 New record time for a tope recapture BBC ...

Islay Tope Festival 2010

Islay hosts an annual tope fishing event dubbed the "Islay Tope Fishing Festival". This is an open event for any anglers interested in taking part, please note though that boat space must be sorted out prior to the event, visitors are welcome to bring their own boat too! This event has been a big success in the previous years it ...

1000 up press release

The following press release was sent out yesterday and marks a significant milestone in the development of the SSTP - 1000 fish tagged and counting, and all in less than one year. This has only been achieved through the terrific support of the 100's of anglers - especially all those who have qualified for a bronze, silver or gold cap. The Scottish ...

United States dogfish fishery starts sustainability assessment

The U.S.began a full assemsent of the Spurdog (Squalus acanthius) fishery today in line with the Marine Stewardship Council’s (MSC) certification programme for sustainable and well-managed fisheries. The fishery, which operates in the United States Exclusive Economic Zone of the Atlantic Ocean, will be assessed by an independent certifier against the MSC standard for sustainable fishing. If successful, products from this ...

Brazilian company accused of finning 280,000 sharks

From an FIS post. A conservation watchdog Monday accused a Brazilian company of illegally fishing 280,000 sharks which were killed to feed Asia's appetite for sharkfin. The Environmental Justice Institute, a Brazilian group, lodged a suit against seafood exporter Sigel do Brasil Comercio demanding USD 800 million in environmental damages. "We think the sharkfins were exported clandestinely, ...

New record time for a tope recapture

This weekend saw a new record for the time between initial tagging and recapture of a tope – 4 years and 38 days ! The fish, a 36lb male, was caught very near to its original tagging location off Luce Bay by Ian Burrett who after quickly taking the necessary details for the SSTP database, released it again; hopefully ...

The Not Forgotten Event

This post is extracted from a report written by Captain Andy Bridson who put on a charity fishing event for the Not Forgotten Association which provides leisure and recreation for wounded serving and ex-service men and women with disabilities – guys who deserve total respect. Anyone wishing to make a contribution to their cause can do so via this link. ...

Gordon’s Guide to the SSTP Tagging Card

Hi, The purpose of this article is to try and explain why each piece of info requested on the Tagging Card ( available here in pdf ) is important to the Scottish Shark Tagging Programme.   Tagger's name - We reward anglers who have tagged 10, 50 and 100 fish with our ...

Latest SSACN Newsletter

Now available here (pdf) - a round up of some of SSACN's activities to date this year. The newsletter focuses on two major projects – The Scottish Shark Tagging Programme (SSTP – www.tagsharks.com) and a Scottish Industry Science Partnership (SISP) activity, where SSACN are the industry lead, to develop a standard process for undertaking near-shore stock surveys. There’s ...

Top Taggers

Most tagging schemes offer a small reward to anyone who reports the details of any initial / recapture tagging data. The SSTP has decided to award fishing caps which we hope our volunteers will be proud to wear. In order to highlight the level of effort we will be awarding caps at three levels; providing data on ...

The last British Angel

Update :: THE Marine Management Organisation (MMO) the fishing watchdog for England and Wales has presented the Natural History Museum in Plymouth with a rare (dead) angel shark. The shark was mistakenly being sold as a more common fish, but officers recognised it as a protected species. In April 2008 the angel shark was given full ...

BBC in Loch Etive

The BBC approached the SSTP as they were interested in the conservation work that we are doing involving sea anglers and Spurdog, they joined the SSTP aboard Ronnie Campbells boat Laura Dawn to try and tag some Spurdog in Loch Etive. The presenter Frank Pope, who also writes for the Times on marine issues, showed lots of interest towards the ...

World Conference on Marine Biodiversity

From their website Vision The oceans provide an irreplaceable resource to humankind which must be protected and managed into the future. The impact of changes in biodiversity as a result of direct and indirect human impact must be fully considered.  Aim of the conference The World Conference on Marine Biodiversity has the overall aim of ...

Tagging porbeagle

The Marine Institute (MI) in County Galway is working together with anglers to study the migration and diving behaviour of Porbeagle sharks (Lamna nasus) in the northeast Atlantic, in a project which will end in 2011. These sharks are one of the top marine predators around Ireland, but very little is known about their movement patterns . The study ...

Volunteer Oppurtunity

The Scottish Shark Tagging Programme (SSTP) is looking for volunteers to help it with its ongoing work over the summer. Volunteers will be expected to assist the SSTP in many areas of its day to day business as well as helping with long term research projects. Volunteers will be trained in how to tag and record data on elasmobranchs (Sharks, ...

Sharkatag juniors on BBC / CBBC

During Sharkatag the CBBC / BBC Newsround programme did a item for their programme where the interviewer ‘Leah’ went out in one of the boats along with Kiera Merrifield and Bradley Burrett – you may see the item on the CBBC / BBC website       Leah with Kiera and Bradley Related posts:Sharkatag ...