Gruesome photos of the mutilated carcasses of rotting stingrays in a bay of Sydney Harbor have angered local divers and environmentalists.
The underwater photos from Chowder Bay – site of the popular north coast swimming spot Clifton Gardens – show the remains of two rays that had apparently been captured, had their edible fins chopped off and thrown back into the water to slowly die.
Local diver and photographer Jayne Jenkins posted the images to social media on August 14, claiming that both rays were at least 20 years old and had been carelessly discarded after their ‘wings’ were chopped off.
“Not much to say today other than one of the saddest dives in Chowder Bay…” she posted.
Since then, an image of a dead eagle ray with fish hooks sticking through its flesh in the bay has also emerged online.
“Unfortunately it is legal, but too many rays are being killed in Chowder Bay,” Ms Jenkins told Mosman Collective.
Local divers also reported finding chicken bones under the Chowder Bay jetty, suggesting they were used as bait.
The discovery of the dead rays has led to calls for a fishing ban and the creation of an aquatic reserve in the area.
Gruesome photos of the carcasses of dead and rotting rays in a bay in Sydney Harbor have sparked outrage among local divers and environmentalists
The underwater photos taken at Chowder Bay on the north side of the harbor show the remains of two rays that were reportedly captured, hacked to death and thrown back into the water.
“Fishing in Chowder (Bay) should have been banned years ago,” someone posted under photos of the dead rays.
Many others commented that the sight of the dead rays was “sad,” “heartbreaking,” and “cruel.”
Mrs. Jenkins told the Mosman Daily the rays were ‘friendly’ and an attraction for divers.
“I’ve been diving in the bay for 30 years and it seems like all we do is clear out fishing lines, hooks and even whole fishing rods.
‘In high season you can get a hundred fishermen on the pier and they can all have three rods.
‘We believe that fishing should at least be done in an ethical and responsible manner.’
Recreational Fishing Alliance NSW chairman Stan Konstantaras called calls to ban fishing in the area “the dumbest idea in the world”.
“We’re allowed to catch stingrays, so why on earth would we want to give up a place like that to fish based on a few stingrays?” he told the publication.
“It’s just an attempt by environmentalists to ban fishing.”
Recreational Fishing Alliance NSW chairman Stan Konstantaras called calls to ban fishing in this part of Sydney Harbor ‘the dumbest idea in the world’
NSW Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty said the government has no plans to ban fishing in Chowder Bay.
“Making an arbitrary decision to simply close it down because of these circumstances, as tragic as they are, is not something the government is looking for,” she said.
An investigation by fisheries officials from the Department of Primary Industries had failed to identify the fishermen responsible for the acts, but said in a statement it would continue to patrol the area regularly in an effort to deter illegal activity .
The controversy arose after a fisherman was fined just $500 in January this year for shooting dead a protected blue groper at the Oak Park rock pool in Cronulla.
The fish, affectionately called ‘Gus’, had lived in the area for decades and was well known to divers and swimmers, and its death sparked outrage in the local community.