#eatmorefish #hake netting over the Haig Fras

Latest tweet from the Newlyn netter Ajax:

Ajax TO32 @Ajax_Hake

A calm foggy morning here on the Haig Fras, a proposed area to be closed off

The green arrow marks the position of the rocky outcrop better known as the Haig Fras where the Ajax is currently gillnetting for hake.

Haig Fras is an isolated, fully submarine bedrock outcrop located in the Celtic Sea, 95 km north west of the Isles of Scilly. It is the only substantial area of rocky reef in the Celtic Sea beyond the coastal margin. It supports a variety of fauna ranging from jewel anemones and Devonshire cup coral near the peak of the outcrop to encrusting sponges, crinoids and ross coral towards the base of the rock (where boulders surround its edge) (Rees, 2000). The rock is granite, mostly smooth with occasional fissures. The rocky outcrop is approximately 45 km long and in one area rises to a peak which lies just 38 m beneath the sea surface (Rees, 2000). The surrounding seabed is approximately 100m deep.