Are there sharks in Croatia? Yes, of course. Sharks are present in the Croatian Adriatic whether we like to think about them as we dip our feet in it during sweltering summer days or not. The species found there usually pose no threat to humans and tend to keep themselves to themselves, avoiding any kind of contact with us.
From time to time, however, sharks in Croatia do appear, either on camera delighting those filming and taking photos such as the Mako shark who became a sort of celebrity this past summer, or accidentally turning up stuck in fishermen’s nets dotted along the Croatian coast.
As Morski writes on the 9th of December, 2019, Dalmatian fishermen were shocked to find a large Bluntnose sixgill shark (Hexanchus griseus) stuck in their net. The fisherman from Trogir, Marko Šola, recorded this latest footage of a shark in Croatia and commented with his colleague that the animal weighed at least 700-800 kilograms. The shark was caught near Rogoznica, but was soon returned back to the sea safe and sound.
An expert opinion was given to Dalmacija Danas today by the experienced Pero Ugarković, an associate of the Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries and editor of the popular Facebook page Podvodni.hr.
”They’re not dangerous, this is a deep-sea species. They rarely appear in shallow waters, mostly at night. Sometimes there are encounters with divers, several of which were recorded in the Adriatic, the last time being in Kvarner.
These are generally smaller because they avoid the light when they’re maturing. This species lives in all of the world’s seas. In the Mediterranean, as well as in Croatia, it is occasionally caught by nets by accident. The shark from the video footage was returned to the sea shortly after recording it, which is a legal obligation for fishermen. This one in the video weighs about half a tonne,” Ugarkovic stated.
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