A spiny dogfish.
© Doug Costa NOAA/SBNMSA spiny dogfish.
They're going to need a bigger boat.

About 60 dead and decaying dogfish sharks washed up on the beaches of Absecon Island, according to reports, and no one knows why. If you're one of those people that's worried about getting attacked by a shark while at the beach, the video below may ease your worries.

Some say the appearance of the sharks are a result of a broken fishing net, or that anglers purposely tossed the creatures into the water.

Capt. Jason Snellbaker of the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife disputes that theory, saying dogfish sharks aren't particularly sought after by fishermen.

"These fish are not worth much compared to other valued species and typically are considered a nuisance among recreational and some commercial anglers," he said.

The fish are common from Canada to Florida and are found on the coast out to deeper offshore water. There is little consumer demand for spiny dogfish in the United States, but it is commonly used in Europe as the fish in "fish and chips," reports the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Snellbaker added: "(It's) most likely a natural occurrence with nothing to be alarmed about."

In August 2018, a dogfish shark was spotted near Sandy Hook. It was reportedly injured and returned to deeper water by park rangers.

And, in 2016, more than a dozen dead dogfish sharks were found on a Lavallette beach. Then, as now, the state Department of Environmental Protection was not sure of the cause, although fisherman releasing the sharks, dead or alive, was also advanced as the theory, Caryn Shinske, a spokeswoman for the department, said at that time.