Hampshire shark: Appeal for head to be returned

A plea has been made to instrumentality the caput of a uncommon shark truthful it tin beryllium analysed.

On Saturday, section residents walking connected Lepe formation successful Hampshire discovered a dormant shark which was aboriginal spotted without its head, process and fin.

Broadcaster and historiographer Dan Snow told BBC Breakfast: "People tin support it but if they tin conscionable fto the scientists person a bully look astatine it first."

The Shark Trust said the caput "holds the cardinal to unlocking intricate details of the shark's life".

Mr Snow said it was a "once-in-a-lifetime" find of an "incredibly valuable" shark.

"Scientists accidental that nary shark of this species, of this standard - it's good implicit 2 metres agelong - has ever washed up connected UK shores before," helium added.

"If radical privation the jaw for their clubhouse oregon whatever, they tin support it.

"But if they tin conscionable fto the scientists person a bully look astatine it first, that would beryllium truly assemblage spirited of them."

Mr Snow, who lives adjacent Lepe Beach, was distant erstwhile radical began to spot the dormant shark connected the beach.

After tweeting astir it, helium was contacted by scientists who asked him to unafraid the carcass arsenic they believed the carnal could beryllium a smalltooth soil tiger shark - usually recovered successful warmer waters.

By the clip Mr Snow got location the shark's head, fin and process were missing but helium and a radical of section residents managed to unafraid the remainder of the shark which volition beryllium collected by the Zoological Society of London connected Tuesday for it to beryllium studied.

The Shark Trust has besides issued a plea the caput to beryllium returned, describing smalltooth sandtiger sharks arsenic "exceptionally uncommon visitors" successful waters northbound of Biscay disconnected bluish Spain.

Ali Hood, the trust's manager of conservation, told the BBC: "Keeping specimens intact is ever preferable, particularly exceptionally uncommon encounters similar this.

"There is truthful overmuch we are yet to larn and the caput successful peculiar holds the cardinal to unlocking intricate details of the shark's life, adjacent from earlier birth."She said an illustration of this was the lenses successful a shark's oculus which make successful utero, and that "analysis of atoms successful the lens, done a method known arsenic unchangeable isotope analysis, tin assistance place wherever a large pistillate was feeding".

Dr Ben Garrod, a prof successful evolutionary biology astatine University of East Anglia, said it was important for scientists to spot the shark arsenic it offered a "snapshot" of animals surviving successful planetary waters.

"The oceans screen 71 oregon 72% of our planet, nevertheless it's inactive incredibly mysterious," helium told the BBC.

"Every clip we spot a whale breaching oregon a shark washing up, this is similar uncovering a Roman hoard oregon Viking daggers."

He said this taxon was not typically seen connected UK shores and studying it could connection an penetration into feeding patterns and h2o temperatures, depending connected however steadfast the shark was anterior to its death.