Giant bluefin tuna seen chasing mackerel off Devon coast
Eastern Atlantic bluefin tuna up to 8ft long have been seen off the coast of Devon after conservation efforts brought thousands back to British waters.
A school of around 50 tuna were photographed chasing mackerel and garfish, feet away from a kayaker.
Rising numbers of the once endangered species have been attributed to both conservation moves and warming seas.
The fish, which can reach 10ft and live up to 40 years, drew watchers to the coast of Yorkshire in the 1930s and 40s, when they were abundant.
But they had all but disappeared from British waters by the 1990s as a result of overfishing and changing climatic conditions in the Atlantic.
Kayaker Rupert Kirkwood captured his close encounter with the bluefin tuna, which he estimated weighed up to 660lbs (47st), as it leapt out of the water.
“There was a massive splash and then we saw these enormous tuna swimming around. It was like an explosion,” he said.
“We were just sitting there with our jaws wide open. Sitting in a kayak, we put ourselves right in the firing line of these living missiles – but it certainly provided the most thrilling seat for enjoying the show.
“I have been passionate about animals and wildlife for my entire life, and have been kayaking since I was 12. This was a really special sight for me, and is why I still love doing it.”
In August, a recreational catch-and-release bluefin tuna fishery began operating in UK waters for the first time since the return of the species. It came after a three-year long research programme established that the population could sustain recreational fishing.
Between 2021 and last year, up to 24 charter boats took part in the scientific programme each year, tagging over 3,000 tuna.
Meanwhile the first Atlantic bluefin tuna to be commercially caught in more than 70 years was sold for sushi in London last year, after a separate pilot programme.
British fishers had no quota for the bluefin tuna under EU regulations, even as they began re-emerging in the early 2010s.
In the wake of Brexit, the UK now has a small quota of 50 tonnes, or around 300 fish, granted by the regulator, the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas.