A Yorkshire fisherman got more than he bargained for when he caught a large thresher shark, weighing 1,000lb just 200 yards off the Yorkshire coast. According to one newspaper, Pip Farline had to call other fishermen to help him haul in the shark.

The last time a deepwater shark was caught off the Yorkshire coast was reported to be almost 80 years ago.

Thresher sharks are found in all temperate and tropical oceans of the world and can grow up to 15 ft in length. Although occasionally sighted in shallow, inshore waters, thresher sharks are primarily pelagic.

Coelacanth caught

Fishermen in Zanzibar have caught another coelacanth off the island's northern tip. This one weighed 27 kg and was 1.34 meters long.Coelacanths, known from fossil records dating back more than 360 million years, were thought to have become extinct 80 million years ago until one was caught off the eastern coast of South Africa in 1938.None have been caught in South African waters since, but some 30 have been caught in recent years off Tanzania as diminishing shallow-water resources have forced fishermen to fish in the deeper waters where coelacanths exist. 

A tonne of toxic pufferfish seized

Police in Thailand have arrested a man planning to sell more than a tonne of illegal pufferfish, also known as globefish or blowfish, to sell at a wholesale market in Samut Songkhram province southwest of Bangkok. When not prepared properly by specially-trained chefs, these fish can contain a potent toxin that can kill when eaten.The sale of pufferfish has been banned in Thailand since 2002, after six Thais who ate it died. The ovaries, liver and intestines of the pufferfish contain tetrodotoxin, a poison so potent that the US Food and Drug Administration say can produce rapid and violent death. It is also used in Voodoo. The fish is called Fugu in Japan, where it is consumed by thrill-seeking Japanese gourmets for whom the risk of poisoning is a draw.

Sea Shepherd stops illegal fishing in Galapagos

On patrol in the Galapagos, on July 1st The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society vessel Farley Mowat was returning from Isabella Island when the crew spotted a suspicious motor vessel 6-7 nautical miles south of the Farley Mowat's position. Captain Alex Cornelissen called all hands on deck when a series of buoys were seen. The long line carried none of the required bird-scaring devices and was set to target yellowfin tuna. A call to Sean O'Hearn-Gimenez, director of operations for Sea Shepherd Galapagos, confirmed the long line found 10 miles south of Isabella Island and some 30 miles inside the protected Galapagos National Park Marine Reserve was undoubtedly illegal and in violation of the rules and regulations of the Galapagos National Park. The crew began pulling in the line, freeing any and all animals unfortunate enough to fall victim to the poachers, and seizing all of the illegal fishing equipment.Second and third lines were also confiscated. A Sea Shepherd zodiac was deployed to gather evidence on the poaching vessel which continued to illegally set monofilament line at a distance of 5 nm from the Sea Shepherd vessel. The poachers began throwing equipment overboard to destroy evidence, which was later confiscated. The video evidence of the boat fleeing the scene was given to The National Park Service.On Friday, June 29, in the town of Libertad, near to the coastal city of Guayaquil, Sea Shepherd Galapagos Director, O’Hearn-Gimenez took part in a raid on a house that was being used to process illegally obtained sea cucumbers for shipment out of the country. The raid resulted in the seizure of 26 sacks of sea cucumbers representing some 40,000 of the animals, and the equipment used to process them.