SHARKS IN THE THAMES
Research led our by Zoological Society of London (ZSL) has confirmed that sharks are regular visitors to the tidal Thames.
Not that it's great white sharks or tiger sharks or bull sharks swimming up and down, it's more tope, starry smooth hound and spurdog.
Although if they do get any bigger shark problems they can always grab the Orca and the cast of The Shark Is Broken, currently playing at The Ambassadors Theatre in London.
But that there are any sharks living on the Thames is still hugely impressive in this The State of the Thames Report when you consider that in 1957 the Thames was "biologically dead".
That means it was that polluted that nothing could live in it. We are talking Ben Gardner's head level of dead.
Sharks are living in the Thames -- with the river teeming with life 64 years after being declared 'biologically dead'
“Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.“Spurdog (or Spiny dogfish as they are also known) are one of the UK’s most interesting shark species. Thought to have one of the longest gestation periods of any vertebrate (18-24 months), this migratory shark species is actually somewhat rare. Boasting two small venemous dorsal spines for defence, these small sharks do pack a punch - I would know, as I accidentally spiked myself on one a few years ago! My research back in 2020 showed these sharks had ingested microplastics from the North-East Atlantic, so it would be very interesting to compare those living in a significantly more polluted water source such as the Thames.””
Happily that has changed, but the report - which also saw it count seahorses, eels and seals as inhabitants - also gave a stark warning about rising effects of pollution.
Oxygen levels are improving but nitrates from sewage are getting worse in the Thames. There is also the spectre of climate change, its levels of temperature are rising and so are sea levels.
All of which sparks concern for the new array of creatures that call the tidal Thamas home.
The thames of the future?
So what exactly is the tidal Thames? It is a 95 miles (153 km) long estuary, which spans around half the length of the whole River Thames, starting at Teddington Weir in west London.
It then winds its way through the UK's capital and out into Essex and Kent, where it eventually joins the sea.
There were a shiver of great white sharks that did call a canal in London their home recently though...sort of:
Great White Sharks Make New Home In North London
Words by Dean Newman
Quote provided by Kristian Parton
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