Lee lands his best fish in UK waters

Lee lands his best fish in UK waters
Lee's shark

Print Unit Operator Lee Edwards landed the biggest shark of his life – a 58 pound tope - while on one of his recent fishing trips to the coast of Dumfries and Galloway.

A very keen angler, Lee along with his father tag, weigh, measure and release each specimen they catch and send the results to the National Oceanographic Institute in Southampton, where they are recorded on a national database.

Lee, who has won fish of the week several times in Scottish national newspapers, said: “It has now been 37 years in a row that I have travelled to Dumfries and Galloway to fish for tope. They are a member of the tiger shark family and are caught all over the west coast of Scotland from early June to mid-October.

“They turn up in large packs and can vary in size, with males reaching a maximum of around 50lb and females getting much larger, to around 90lb. However a specimen catch is anything over 40lb.

“Me and my father tag and release these sharks every year. This involves measuring the length and girth and determining whether it’s male or female, removing the hook then placing a tag containing a nine digit number into its dorsal fin, and then returning it safely to the sea.

“The information including depth of water, location, conditions, etc is then recorded and sent off to the National oceanographic institute in Southampton, where they are recorded on a national database.

“This one is my personal best fish that I have caught in the UK, and weighed between 57.5 and 58lb, which is considered an excellent specimen. It took around fifteen minutes to land, on a rod made by my father, using a whole mackerel for bait.”