Far North Fisherman Angered Over Spike In Bull Sharks

A professional fisherman has called for more bull shark control across the Far North's ocean, warning of the threat posed to recreational fishing.

Cairns local Ryan Moody said restrictions on commercial fishing of bull sharks have resulted in a large spike.

The 36-year-old says there is a need for bull shark checking to ensure the industry isn't devastated.

“Numbers might have been suffering in areas overseas, but not in waters here, and recreational and professional fishermen are losing a massive percentage of their catch to bull sharks,” he said.

“They are spiralling out of control, sharks have always been smart and come to the boat, but there’s so many more of them now.

“They are very resilient, a very tough shark, aggressive, and they have heaps of pups,” Mr Moody said.

“They’re definitely a pest, and the problem is the government won’t listen to us, they don’t care that more spear fishermen are getting bitten, more swimmers are getting munched.

A large portion of the world's fatal shark attacked in 2020 occured in Australia, nearly half of those in Queensland, per an international study.

In 2020, there were 92 bull shark attacks across the globe - 25 of them were reported as fatal.

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