By Jesse Leavenworth, Staff Writer
Updated Aug 6, 2026 7:36 p.m.
Gallery Caption: Angler’s shark-chomped catch. Photo taken Wednesday. Greg Dubrule, owner of Niantic-based Blackhawk Sport Fishing, says shark-bit fish are “epidemic” now for anglers on chartered boats. — Courtesy of Blackhawk Sport Fishing. Click any image to see a larger version and scroll through the gallery.
Sharks have rebounded off Connecticut’s coast, thanks to federal protection and cleaner, warmer water, but some charter fishing operators say proliferation of the opportunistic predators is getting ridiculous and potentially ruinous to their livelihoods.
“It’s epidemic. It’s beyond what we could ever imagine,” Greg Dubrule, owner of Niantic-based Blackhawk Sport Fishing, said.
“They are everywhere — from Westbrook to Watch Hill,” Old Saybrook-based Reel Cast Charters operator Mike Roy said. “Thousands of them, not hundreds.”
The sleek predators, particularly brown, or sandbar sharks, are striking bait and fish hooked on anglers’ lines, rendering potential prize catches into chomped remnants, charter captains say.
“We have seen over 15 sharks today in two hours,” Roy, 42, said of an outing Thursday morning off New London focused on catching striped bass.
“We’re not going to be able to fish for stripers the way it’s going,” he said.
