Everyone loves a dolphin and bird-watching is a popular activity but what about the largest group of vertebrate animals? Fish are poorly known and sadly under-appreciated-except perhaps on the dinner plate.
Many sailors can probably recognise a mackerel but few people regard fish as interesting animals to observe. There is an amazing variety of fish with two main groups – the cartilaginous fish, comprising sharks, skates and rays – and the more numerous bony fish. Of course, to see most of the 300+ species that inhabit UK coastal waters you’d need to enter their underwater realm. But there are fish that can be seen at the surface – and they tend to be big and impressive.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Genevieve Leaper is a lifetime sailor with a degree in zoology who has worked on seabird and marine mammal surveys. She has also been a fast rescue boat instructor, and is now a freelance photographer, writer and environmental consultant. Genevieve owns a 17ft trimaran and also sails her partner’s Nicholson 32 in Greece.
Basking shark
Better still, the one you’re most likely to see is the biggest. The basking shark is the second largest fish on the planet, 2m long at birth and growing to 10m or more. Only the whale shark, a fellow plankton feeder, is larger.
Basking sharks visit us in summer, appearing first off Devon and Cornwall and the south coast of Ireland from around April, reaching the Isle of Man and Scottish waters by the end of May. July and August are generally the best
