North Australian FISH FINDER TM forums

anyone eaten these big suckers? always cut the line and let them go but been thinking you would get some nice big slabs of meat off the buggers. are they good eating? flakes flake right? people eat it from a fish and chip shops.

Bugger letting them in the boat lol

cheers Brent

Only if you're really desperate mate. I'm a stingy bastrd, so I wrestle em to the surface to get me sinker back. Tried a small one once..Couldn't rate it as any good. Now a small 1m blacktip, trunked and slurried...that's tasty done in a beer batter.
graham.

hey sinkers are expensive these days mate i do the same.

was just a thought as i've never heard of anyone eating one. thought it might have been one of those situations where someone said it was cr.p and no one from there on has eaten them because they've heard a story once back in 1852.

might give one a go to say ive done it. im sure ive eaten worse. if its cr.p im sure it might make half decent crab bait

Blacktip and small hammerheads go alright (not handlebars)

They are too sour.

Some tequila and salt, and they are good to go

I wish they were good on the chew,,,I,d need 2 freezers with the amount I get.Last trip 9 lemons ,,,9 sinkers!!!

What species of Lemon Sharks do you get up there. I just googled it, and all the photos are of toothy crtitters. They don't have a traditional shark mouth full of teeth do they?

Proper lemons do have a ragged mouth full of teeth. The ones these guys are talking about is actually a tawny Nurse shark. Suckers are all over the reefs. A good sign that the area gets plenty of fishing pressure in my veiw.

From Wikipedia;
"This species is caught by commercial fisheries across most of its range for meat, fins, liver oil, leather, and fishmeal. It is also esteemed as a game fish off Queensland, Australia, and is known for its habit of spitting water in the faces of its captors. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has assessed the tawny nurse shark as Vulnerable, with subpopulations in several areas already diminished or extirpated."

As it is hunted by commercial fisherman in other countries, makes me think they may be good on the chew.

drifter wrote:From Wikipedia;
"This species is caught by commercial fisheries across most of its range for meat, fins, liver oil, leather, and fishmeal. It is also esteemed as a game fish off Queensland, Australia, and is known for its habit of spitting water in the faces of its captors. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has assessed the tawny nurse shark as Vulnerable, with subpopulations in several areas already diminished or extirpated."

As it is hunted by commercial fisherman in other countries, makes me think they may be good on the chew.

Just take a chain saw to dinner to cut it. lol

Drifter, they say it is a commercial species and they also say it is "esteemed as a game fish off Queensland".

It is esteemed as a game fish only when it's on your mate's line!

Oh.....I didn't realised esteemed meant "despised"

Like many sharks, while plentiful here the nurse numbers are dropping around the world. Finning and unregulated commercial fishing equals swift extinction if governments don't act together to protect these awesome fish.