A RARE thresher shark was sighted in Fishguard Harbour yesterday, surprising locals and conservationists alike.

Threshers are big spectacular sharks growing up to four metres or more including their huge scythe shaped tail.

They use the tail to thrash about among shoals of fish stunning and damaging them before taking their time to mop them up and eat them.

All three species of thresher sharks have been listed as vulnerable to extinction by the World Conservation Union since 2007.

They are not commonly found in shallow inshore waters and prefer the open ocean.

Local conservationist Cliff Benson believes the Fishguard thresher could have been attracted to the harbour mouth by shoaling fish and then driven in to the harbour by the arrival of the ferry.

“There are often quite a lot of fish around the Fishguard harbour mouth,” said Cliff. “ We often see Dolphins and Porpoises feeding there.

“The shark may have been attracted to the harbour mouth by shoaling fish. It probably was pushed in as the ferry arrived and ended up trapped.

“An animal like that is used to being out in the open ocean not the confines of a harbour, spatial awareness is probably not one of its major gift. Apparently It eventually escaped and swam off.”

Cliff added that Sea Trust volunteers would today be keeping watch on Fishguard Harbour’s outer breakwater to see if the creature remerged.

“Threshers are quite rare but we seem to have had a few sightings in Pembrokeshire waters, in recent years,” said Cliff.

“On the basis sharks spend very little time visible on the surface sightings it seems likely that Pembrokeshire’s incredibly rich seas may be a hot spot for them as well as other sharks.”

“Hopefully we will continue to get out surveying our marine wildlife and learning more over the next few years including these magnificent sharks.”