A tuna has been caught in Cornish waters, boosting hopes of being able to restart a local fishery. Neil Harman, a Polperro-based fisherman, was out trying to catch bass in his vessel "MCB" when he made the rare catch.
"It was unmistakable," he said. "I have never caught one before and I don't think anyone around this area has either. I was only about 50 yards offshore when I caught it in the bass net and was surprised it was in that close."
Harman, 28, who used to be a ceramic tiler until he turned to commercial fishing, is sending the 8.5lb fish to Plymouth's National Marine Aquarium for identification by expert Douglas Herdson.
Herdson, who has already seen a photograph of the fish, said he believed it was a skipjack tuna.
"They do go further north but it is very unusual inshore," he said. "It is the first I have heard of in the area and perhaps it is a sign that tuna are coming back into Cornish waters.
"The more people that let us know of unusual catches and sightings, the more we will learn."
Newlyn fisherman Robin Turner is carrying out a survey into tuna numbers off Cornish shores using a £40,000 grant from the Government and Europe.
The project mixes commercial fishing with scientific research and, while marine biologist Al Kingston, from the University of Plymouth, studies marine predators such as dolphins and whales, Turner is trying to catch tuna using the old rod and line method.
Turner said yesterday: "If Mr Harman has caught a tuna off Polperro then terrific. We are out to prove there is or isn't stock that is fishable. We have yet to catch a tuna but we have a 45-day experiment and have only been to sea for 11 or 12 days so far.
"We are confident that we will catch one before long."