Black Fish shocks Bajan fishermen

20.MAR.09

THE BRIDGETOWN FISHERIES got an unexpected surge of activity late Sunday, March 15th, when two fishermen docked with a species of whale weighing more than 1,000 pounds.{{more}}

Tyrone Prescod, captain of Sparetime 2, said the mammal got trapped in his net and subsequently drowned.

“It got tangled in the net with the flying fish and by the time we tried to get her loose she had already drowned, so we just brought it ashore so it could be inspected,” the fisherman of more than 40 years said.

“In St. Vincent they refer to it as a “black fish” and it is prepared for human consumption there, but we don’t eat whale here in Barbados, so the necessary precautions will be taken and we will also investigate to verify the manner it was caught,” said General Manager of Markets Henderson Greaves, stating that samples would be taken to the veterinary service department today.

Isand Hinds, a Vincentian living in Barbados, identified the “black fish” the minute it touched the dock and she gave it a value of EC$3,000, if she were back in St. Vincent.

“I just real sorry I’m not the one who caught it. Bajans don’t know good meat. We would cut her up, clean off the fat and roast it. Black fish is money in Vincy and it tastes just like beef; even the oil in her we would drink. Over EC$3,000 I would make off her back home,” she said. (Barbados Nation)