Guest Comments: “Spreading love of animals from our country to yours! Thank you for an experience of a lifetime #ScienceSavesSharks!” – Kerri + Travis
“Amazing people and experience. Thank you!” – Matthew
“Very well done – great to have Biologist on board!” – Uli
09/09/2017
Location: Joubertsdam
Water Temperature: 15.5°C + 15.7°C
Depth: 11.4m + 10.0m
Visibility: 1.0m + 1.5m
Number of Sharks: 2 + 3
Conditions: Clear day with swell causing some motion and light but increasing wind.
This morning marked the first day back on the water after two days off due some storms passing through the area making for unfavourable sea conditions. Slashfin and its’ crew and passengers were first on anchor in the Shallows and only had a short time to wait till our first White shark showed itself. This was a female, estimated a little larger than 3.5m in length and with a unique white pigmentation on her dorsal fin we refer to as “rosie”. This is a new animal that we have not documented in the bay since the sharks have returned over the last four weeks. Fantastic to still see animals coming into the area and hopefully something that will continue. Unfortunately, this shark kept quite deep and disappeared quickly only to join us once more at the end of the trip. The second White shark to appear was not too far behind the first and was none other than ‘Sarko’, a juvenile female we have known well for the last 12 months. The true star of the morning she came and went for each group of divers that entered the water and made some beautiful passes close by the cage and leaps out of the water. We also had two different Copper sharks make a pass by the boat, adding another species of shark to our guests list, although not the shark that people travel all the way to see these are stunning sharks that unlike many other species are quite curious and happy to approach the boat. A quick trip by the Islands and Cape Fur seal colony on Geyser rock whilst waiting for the low waters to rise finished a beautiful morning out on the water.
The second trip of the day followed nicely on from our first with both White and Copper sharks appearing quickly. This trip saw the two females from the first trip however there was a new addition with another female, one we saw on Wednesday, reappearing this afternoon. She looks much like ‘Sarko’ with similar dark scaring down the flanks, however is a little larger, heavier scaring and of course a distinct trailing edge to the dorsal fin. Much like ‘Sarko’ was the stand out for the first trip this female wowed our second group of guests, sticking around for much of the trip and really giving those on board a fantastic view.
A great day out on the water and fantastic start to the weekend.
If you are looking to get up close and personal with the great white shark then Shark Diving in South Africa, and more specifically with Marine Dynamics, is a once-in-a-lifetime experience you won’t want to miss. Book and pay online with us and get a free video of your encounter with the world’s apex predator.
