ABC News August 29, 2018

British, French fisherman spar over scallops

WATCH: French and British fishermen ram boats in fight over scallops

The French have a message for the Brits: share the shellfish!

Twenty-two nautical miles off the coast of Normandy in the Bay of Seine, dramatic video shows French and U.K. fishermen clashing Monday night on the high seas, over scallops. In the video, the fishermen can be seen ramming their boats into one another, chucking rocks and hurling insults.

More than three dozen French boats faced off against about five British and Scottish boats, and eventually the outnumbered U.K. fishermen retreated with several damaged vessels.

Andrew Matthews/PA via AP
In this image taken from France 3 video, French and British boats clash off France's northern coast, early Tuesday Aug. 28, 2018.

According to Sky News, the British fishermen have now asked the Royal Navy for protection.

"The French went to contact the British to stop them working and they clashed with each other," Normandy fishing chief Dimitri Rogoff told the BBC. "Apparently there was stone-throwing, but no injuries."

Andrew Matthews/PA via AP
A member of the crew looks out of the window of the Honeybourne 3, a Scottish scallop dredger, in dock at Shoreham, south England, Aug. 29, 2018, following clashes with French fishermen in the early hours of Tuesday morning off France's northern coast.

The Bay of Seine is filled with scallops, and the French complain that because U.K. boats are allowed to fish there all year, the Brits are taking all the good stuff before they ever arrive.

(MORE: Playful, rutting dolphin leads French mayor to close beaches to protect swimmers)

"For the Brits, it's an open bar — they fish when they want, where they want, and as much as they want," Rogoff told the BBC. For French fishermen, the French government limits scallop fishing from Oct. 1 to May 15.

France 3 via Reuters
French and British fishing boats collide during scrap in English Channel over scallop fishing rights, Aug. 28, 2018 in this still image taken from a video.

"We don't want to stop them from fishing, but they could at least wait until 1 October so that we can share."

"Scallops are a flagship product for Normandy, a primary resource and a highly sensitive issue," Rogoff added, speaking with the BBC.

Britain's National Federation of Fishermen's Organizations is asking the parties to negotiate at the table, not "on the high seas where people could be hurt," the group told the BBC.

Andrew Matthews/PA via AP
The bow of the Honeybourne 3, a Scottish scallop dredger, in dock at Shoreham, south England, Wednesday Aug. 29, 2018, following clashes with French fishermen.