IT wasn’t quite a scene from Jaws. But visitors to Poole Quay this weekend were still shocked to see a member of the shark family swimming in the harbour.

Chas Kirkby, a dockmaster for Cobbs Quay Marina, filmed the smooth-hound shark on his phone when it visited the harbour yesterday afternoon.

Dave Wilson, manager of Cobbs Quay and a former commercial fisherman, said: “It’s very unusual how we got one in Holes Bay, as you wouldn’t normally see one this close up. People were quite shocked. However, it’s a common species this time of year but is more often seen in the Solent.”

He added: “It was swimming around and feeding for around two hours. They feed on crabs. My theory is that they’re coming to the harbour to feed on the thousands of hardback crabs being caught by children and chucked back into the water. It’s a big source of food for them.

“Also, the hermit crab is a staple diet for the smooth hound, and you get a lot of them round here moving into the whelk shells left behind by fishermen.”

The small grey-brown shark can be identified by its pointed snout and pair of large and equally-sized dorsal fins. It typically has white spots on its back and sides and can grow up to 1.6m long.

Its diet is made up primarily of crustaceans, shellfish and molluscs and it’s more commonly seen in the south and west of England.

What an exciting day we've had today. Whilst we were at Poole Harbour Boat Show a very special visitor came into the marina. This smooth-head shark swan in. You can almost hear that theme tune!

Posted by Cobbs Quay Marina on Sunday, May 10, 2015