Santo Domingo. – The Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources, through the National Environmental Protection Service (SENPA), detained two of a group of fishermen who captured and beat to death a bull shark (Carcharhinus leucas) on Nizao beach, Peravia Province.
In a video broadcast through social networks, it is observed how a group of people mercilessly beat the animal, a deplorable and unjustifiable action that goes against the guidelines for the protection, conservation, and care of these species. Likewise, they used an illegal fishing technique by using a trawling net.
The Dominican Republic prohibits the capture and commercialization of species like sharks, rays, herbivorous reef fish, and sea urchins, as well as their derived products.
About the bull shark
The bull shark is a solitary or small group species that like to be left alone. Bull sharks are found in coastal waters all over the world. Unlike most sharks, bull sharks can survive in fresh water for long periods of time.
They can grow up to 3.2 m long and weigh up to 159 kg. The average of the males is 2.1 m and that of the females 2.2 m. It has a massive body with two large dorsal fins and an elongated tail with a long upper lobe and a precaudal beak. They are primary predators that maintain the health of ecosystems, and without their presence fish production would decline and ecosystems would become unhealthy.