APRIL 2010

As predicted natural predations are coming thick and fast as we head into our winter season. On the 4^th of April before we had even finished laying anchor a 2.8m shark was observed off the port bow chasing a seal. The shark tried in 3 or so quick successions to take the seal but was unsuccessful, once the White shark lost the element of surprise and the seal had managed to maneuver itself to the tail end of the shark (if you’re a seal this is the safe end!) the shark gave up and the seal was able to make its way back to the safety of thick kelp.

We have also been able to observe our first whales of the year too, after an extremely good trip where the ocean was more like a lake and we had over 15 different sharks we were heading back into Kleinbaai harbor and saw the distinctive spray of a lone humpback far off the port side of the boat. Hopefully over the coming months this should become a regular sighting as the whales begin to migrate through

The white shark is the most nomadic of all shark species; we do not have any residential white sharks that we see every day throughout the year. The 4 sharks described in last month’s shark activity have not been seen in April. Mickey, Jagger, Mini Notch and Compass all seem to have left the area, who knows in which direction they have headed or for what reason. Part of the white sharks allure is the fact that it is so enigmatic. Instead we are encountering a large number of new characters the pick of the bunch has to be the shark all the crew are referring to as “the little spy hopper”. A 2.5M female with a +/- 50cm scratch mid way down her right flank and scratches all over her snout. This shark keeps all the crew on their toes. She has a habit of coming to the cage and swimming right alongside it sticking her head out of the water trying to understand what she is looking at, she also likes to inspect our propellers with her mouth given half the chance. The ampullae of lorenzini on the snout of the white shark enables the animal to detect electrical fields. As our propellers and the cage are metal once they are in the ocean they emit a mild electrical current, our little spy hopper likes nothing more than to try and mouth them to see what they are. This often results in banging of the motor covers to try and dissuade her. On the 12^th of April after the little spy hopper shark had made a pass from right to left of the cage she lay more or less vertical for 5 seconds with her head out of the water looking right at a couple of clients who were lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time to take some fantastic shots. This particular shark also has a habit of following the bait right into the cage, most of our sharks that approach the cage do so in a cautious manner and then turn away from the cage. Our objective is to bring these beautiful animals in closely enough for so that they can be observed and appreciated, the bait is pulled away quickly giving the shark ample time to see the cage and move off left or right. This is how most of our sharks behave, not our little spy hopper though. She instead decided on the 27^th April that she would slowly follow the bait right in to the cage and ended up with her mouth clamped around the bait and the cage giving those inside a view and a thrill they are very unlikely to forget! Pierre Carreyn from Paris was in the perfect spot to capture some fantastic pictures of the event he enjoyed the experience so much he came back for another fantastic day out with us on the 30^th of April too and stated he would love to have his photographs on our website. Consider it done, from all at White Shark Projects thank you for coming out with us!!

   At White Shark Projects we also run a volunteer project. Annie Moorcroft was with us for a two week spell during April, below is a brief description of her time with us. Annie was a superb volunteer, all at WSP wish you well and hope that you return one day to see our beautiful white sharks!!

“Great White Sharks Projects, Gansbaai South Africa has got to be one of the most rewarding work placements I could have undertaken as a student Marine biologist, seeing a Great White shark for the first time is an experience I will never forget ,the sheer beauty and grace of these animals coupled with  excitement and awe  leaves you with the desire to understand more about this wonderful creature, the skill and knowledge of the crew at White Shark Projects  allowed me to see them every time I went to sea ,on one day we had 18 Sharks visit  the boat, unfortunately of all the sharks I saw over the 2 weeks none were of breeding age which is a concern and warrants the need for conservation, My role on the project was to help with all preparation and cleaning duties but whilst on the boat I was mainly responsible for collecting data, this involved  recording Size, Sex, Temperament and approach to the bait ,fin tag log and recording any scaring the shark had, along with shark behavior towards each other,

Whilst on the project I witnessed 2 breaches but unfortunately this was not captured on film, other behavior included Spy hopping, Gapping and Faceoff this is a way in which sharks communicate in order to assert  dominance with the largest shark having priority of the bait, these details were then put into the data base for the world shark watch project, this data base creates a population/location track of the sharks to aid with their conservation, the project gave detailed lectures on shark Behavior; Biology; Attack and Conservation these proved very informative

On no sea days we were taken out to Betty’s Bay Jackass Penguin colony and to the Giant stingrays where the Atlantic and Indian Ocean meets  ,I could go on forever but in brief it was an incredible privilege to help in the conservation of these incredible animals and as a Shark fanatic since a young age the placement was more than I could have ever hoped, all the staff at White Shark Projects made you feel very much part of the team and made your stay a very welcoming one and I would recommend this project to anyone young or old ,if you can’t do a placement just go and cage dive as this in my opinion is one of the wonders of the world ,it was also a great comfort to see cage diving clients who in some instances were terrified of sharks leaving their dive with a completely different attitude towards sharks , the volunteers on the project were  a fantastic bunch and I now class them as friends, all that is left to say is I can’t wait to return.”