Rarest of All Sharks Ends Up As Dinner Posted at 4/07/2009 03:54:00 PM 1 comments (+)
MANILA, Philippines - Fishermen trawling for mackerel off Masbate near Donsol in Sorsogon instead caught an extremely rare shark and cooked it Bicol style, the World Wide Fund for Nature-Philippines (WWF-Philippines) revealed yesterday.

WWF-Philippines revealed that local fishermen caught a four-meter-long, 500-kilogram megamouth shark last March 30 along the eastern coast of Burias Island.

The group said the shark was retrieved and cooked “kinunot-style” (with coconut milk, malunggay leaves and chili) by the locals.

The report prompted the international conservation group to believe that the Donsol-Masbate region is a haven not just for whale sharks, dolphins and giant manta rays.

“Rarest of all sharks, the megamouth (Megachasma pelagios) is a fairly recent scientific discovery, with just over 40 recorded encounters worldwide,” WWF-Philippines said.

“The first specimen was caught off Oahu, Hawaii in 1976. So different was it from all other sharks that it necessitated the creation of an entirely new family and genus – prompting the scientific community to hail it as the 20th century’s most significant marine find – rivaling the rediscovery of the coelacanth in 1938,” they said.

According to Elson Aca, project manager of WWF-Philippines in Donsol, local fishermen recalled a similar shark was caught in the same area decades ago.

Though the group said the sighting of another megamouth shark is not likely in the near future, it remains possible that similar shark species are in the area.

WWF-Philippines said they would launch an education and information drive among local fishermen on the megamouth shark.

Gregg Yan, WWF-Philippines information officer, said the megamouth is among the world’s rarest shark species, discovered only in 1976.

“Only 40 other megamouths have been discovered worldwide,” he said.

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By Katherine Adraneda

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