NEWS

5 Things to Know About Shore-Based Shark Fishing

1. What is shore-based shark fishing?
The name may seem a little self-explanatory, but shore-based shark fishing doesn’t actually have a real definition per Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission standards, which is one of the hiccups in trying to regulate it. The first step in regulating something, of course, is defining it. 
For all intents and purposes, shore-based shark fishing is the fishing or harvesting or sharks from shore, or structures attached to shore like a pier, jetty, dock etc using specialized equipment. The fishing is usually done at night, with baits kayaked out at dusk when sharks are most active. 
Photo courtest of Matt Pemberton.
1. What is shore-based shark fishing? The name may seem a little self-explanatory, but shore-based shark fishing doesn’t actually have a real definition per Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission standards, which is one of the hiccups in trying to regulate it. The first step in regulating something, of course, is defining it. For all intents and purposes, shore-based shark fishing is the fishing or harvesting or sharks from shore, or structures attached to shore like a pier, jetty, dock etc using specialized equipment. The fishing is usually done at night, with baits kayaked out at dusk when sharks are most active. Photo courtest of Matt Pemberton.
The News Herald
4. But can you keep the sharks?
That being said, there are sharks species that can be harvested, per FWC bag and size limits. 
Atlantic Sharpnose, Blacknose, Blacktip, Bonnethead, Finetooth and all species of dogfish and smoothounds within the Genus Mustelus can be taken with no minimum size at a limit of one per person per day. Bull, Nurse, Spinner, Blue, Oceanic whitetip, Porbeagle and Thresher sharks have a 54-inch fork length minimum size, also at a bag limit of one per person per day. 

Atlantic angel, Basking, Bigeye sand tiger, Bigeye sixgill, Bigeye thresher, Bignose,
Caribbean reef, Caribbean sharpnose shark, Dusky, Galapagos, Great hammerhead, Lemon shark, Longfin mako, Narrowtooth, Night, Sandbar, Sand tiger, Scalloped hammerhead, Sevengill, Silky, Sixgill shark, Smalltail, Smooth hammerhead, Tiger shark, Whale and White sharks are prohibited from harvest in state waters. 

Photo sent in by Ted Myron
4. But can you keep the sharks? That being said, there are sharks species that can be harvested, per FWC bag and size limits. Atlantic Sharpnose, Blacknose, Blacktip, Bonnethead, Finetooth and all species of dogfish and smoothounds within the Genus Mustelus can be taken with no minimum size at a limit of one per person per day. Bull, Nurse, Spinner, Blue, Oceanic whitetip, Porbeagle and Thresher sharks have a 54-inch fork length minimum size, also at a bag limit of one per person per day. Atlantic angel, Basking, Bigeye sand tiger, Bigeye sixgill, Bigeye thresher, Bignose, Caribbean reef, Caribbean sharpnose shark, Dusky, Galapagos, Great hammerhead, Lemon shark, Longfin mako, Narrowtooth, Night, Sandbar, Sand tiger, Scalloped hammerhead, Sevengill, Silky, Sixgill shark, Smalltail, Smooth hammerhead, Tiger shark, Whale and White sharks are prohibited from harvest in state waters. Photo sent in by Ted Myron
The News Herald
3. What about the sharks? 
Shore-based shark fishing is primarily a catch-and-release sport, which means that if all goes according to plan, the shark will quickly be on its way. One local angler estimated that about 90 percent of the shore-based shark fishing locally is catch-and-release. Many local anglers actually participate in a NOAA program that has them measuring and tagging the sharks they catch for research purposes. The reason much of the gear is so large is because, well sharks would break smaller gear, but also because bigger gear helps bring bigger sharks in faster and is much safer for the animal. Some sharks, like Hammerheads, can be surprisingly fragile, and can fight themselves to death if they’re not brought in quickly. 
Photo of Cherie "Sharklady" Will.
3. What about the sharks? Shore-based shark fishing is primarily a catch-and-release sport, which means that if all goes according to plan, the shark will quickly be on its way. One local angler estimated that about 90 percent of the shore-based shark fishing locally is catch-and-release. Many local anglers actually participate in a NOAA program that has them measuring and tagging the sharks they catch for research purposes. The reason much of the gear is so large is because, well sharks would break smaller gear, but also because bigger gear helps bring bigger sharks in faster and is much safer for the animal. Some sharks, like Hammerheads, can be surprisingly fragile, and can fight themselves to death if they’re not brought in quickly. Photo of Cherie "Sharklady" Will.
The News Herald
The News Herald
5. Is it dangerous?
Lately there’s been a lot of buzz about shore-based shark fishing, with members of the public concerned about the mortality of the sharks, as well the possibility of sharks being brought closer to shore and closer to swimmers. 

Melissa Recks with FWC has said that so far, there’s no data to support that shore-based shark fishing has led to an increase in shark bites in the state. The community is also so small, Recks said, that there’s no evidence shore-based shark fishing is having any impact on the local shark fishery. 

As with any sport, especially sports involving powerful fish with lots of teeth, there is potential for things to go awry, especially if the right equipment isn’t present.
5. Is it dangerous? Lately there’s been a lot of buzz about shore-based shark fishing, with members of the public concerned about the mortality of the sharks, as well the possibility of sharks being brought closer to shore and closer to swimmers. Melissa Recks with FWC has said that so far, there’s no data to support that shore-based shark fishing has led to an increase in shark bites in the state. The community is also so small, Recks said, that there’s no evidence shore-based shark fishing is having any impact on the local shark fishery. As with any sport, especially sports involving powerful fish with lots of teeth, there is potential for things to go awry, especially if the right equipment isn’t present.
The News Herald
2. Okay, but how do they do it? 
Shark fishing isn’t as simple as casting a line and waiting. Actually, casting isn’t really involved. 
Anglers, using very high quality, large expensive rods and high capacity reels (usually 50-pound class at least), along with steel leaders, set up on shore or on a structure. Bait - usually cut up stingrays, ladyfish, bonita etc - is attached to the hook and the whole line is then taken out by kayak hundreds of yards, beyond the sandbars, and dropped. 
Once a shark is hooked up, anglers reel it in like any fish, albeit a much larger fish with many more teeth. Because sharks are big and strong and usually pretty feisty, there’s often a team of people working to get the shark in, get the hook out of the mouth, measure it, tag it if needed, and push it back out to sea. If they’re on a pier, the angler can either try and lead the shark back down to the beach and hope it doesn’t get caught in any pylons, or bring it up on the pier, get the hook out and lower it back down. That may sound like a long process, but local shark angler Jeff O’Neal said Monday he and his team have a system that can get a Hammerhead out of the Gulf, up on the pier, and lowered back down within three minutes.
2. Okay, but how do they do it? Shark fishing isn’t as simple as casting a line and waiting. Actually, casting isn’t really involved. Anglers, using very high quality, large expensive rods and high capacity reels (usually 50-pound class at least), along with steel leaders, set up on shore or on a structure. Bait - usually cut up stingrays, ladyfish, bonita etc - is attached to the hook and the whole line is then taken out by kayak hundreds of yards, beyond the sandbars, and dropped. Once a shark is hooked up, anglers reel it in like any fish, albeit a much larger fish with many more teeth. Because sharks are big and strong and usually pretty feisty, there’s often a team of people working to get the shark in, get the hook out of the mouth, measure it, tag it if needed, and push it back out to sea. If they’re on a pier, the angler can either try and lead the shark back down to the beach and hope it doesn’t get caught in any pylons, or bring it up on the pier, get the hook out and lower it back down. That may sound like a long process, but local shark angler Jeff O’Neal said Monday he and his team have a system that can get a Hammerhead out of the Gulf, up on the pier, and lowered back down within three minutes.
The News Herald