Dogfish washed up on Formby Beach

This is a dogfish which was washed up on Formby beach today and the photo sent in by Val Whitehead.

This is a 'Lesser Spotted Dogfish' or also known as Smallspotted Catshark' which are quite common in the North Sea.

Paul Jenkins on Formby Bubble Facebook said:

"For some reason this time of year a few dogfish wash up around Formby beach. They are very plentiful in the Mersey basin and can be caught all year round. Boat Fishermen can be plagued with them if they hit a shoal. They are members of the shark family but only grow to about 24 inches. Their bigger cousins living in the area are bullhuss smoothounds and tope . None of them pose any danger at all to people. They are very resilient and will eat any scraps the sea can offer them."