Revealing detail in photo of dog walker’s mysterious beach find
Each piece of plastic has a unique serial number that could lead authorities to those responsible.
After a heavy swell, you might expect to find the remains of fish washed up on the sand. And that’s exactly what happened during a dog walker’s morning stroll yesterday, except there was something very strange about what they had in their mouths.
“I saw the plastic. But I didn't really know what it was,” Mary told Yahoo News after she returned from Fremantle’s C.Y. O'Connor Beach.
Seeing one piece of plastic inside a fish would sadly not be rare in 2024, as it’s estimated there are now 5.25 trillion floating in the ocean. But the plastic pieces Mary photographed had been deliberately placed there, and it wasn’t just one – she found four fish with near-identical plastic tags through their lips.
Each tag had a unique identification number, so Mary diligently photographed each one, then called in her find to the Western Australian Fisheries hotline. They were very interested.
Tags posed a risk to pets and wildlife
Mary’s biggest concern had been that a dog might have scavenged the remains of one of the partially buried fish then choked on the plastic tag, similar to how dingoes are frequently maimed after stealing incorrectly stored baited hooks in Queensland.
“I thought I’ve got to cut those tags off, because something else is going to eat those fish, and then swallow those tags. Or a bird like a cormorant could get its beak stuck. You see no end of birds with plastic around their beaks and necks,” she said.
Authorities investigating fish tag find
The Department of Primary Industries (DPIRD), which oversees fishing regulations, told Yahoo News it is investigating Mary’s find to determine if any offences have occurred under fisheries legislation.
It confirmed the fish that she photographed had been filleted, so only the frames remained.
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With species like pink snapper there are regulations to ensure they’re fished sustainably. Charter boat operators are allocated tags which are placed in the mouths of the fish they reel in, so the number of individuals caught can be tracked.
How the tagged fish ended up littered along the beach remains a mystery, but DPIRD should be able to find those responsible through the numbering system.
“The fishing charter sector operates under a tag system to manage catches of West Coast Demersal Scalefish species to sustainable levels,” a DPIRD spokesperson said.
“Where fish have been filleted at sea, charter operators must ensure a tag accompanies the fillets when landed ashore.”
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