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  • Shark cage diving in Gansbaai, South Africa with Marine Dynamics. Experience the exceptional and come face to face with a great white shark! 

  • The exact world record white shark is a contested issue, but chances are it is between 6-7m. In Gansbaai, the largest white shark ever caught was at Danger Point and measured up to 5.9m.

  • If you see a white shark in the water don’t panic. Chances are high that the shark has already detected you and isn’t interested. White shark attacks are normally associated with poor visibility, so avoid murky conditions.

  • White sharks have a unique system called a “counter current heat exchange”, which keeps their body  tempreture +/- 7C above the surrounding water temperature. 

  • All sharks have an incredibly unique system on the tip of their nose called the “ampillae of Lorenzini”. These are small pores filled with a gel that transmits the electrical currents in the water to the shark’s brain so that it can assess its environment.

  • White sharks give birth to live young (not eggs), and they give birth to 6-8 pups at one time. Pups are usually between 1.0-1.5m in length and are born with teeth.

  • Body language has been a well documented form of shark communication and has identified body arching, jaw gaping, and other postures as specific social tactics.

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Sharkwatch SA Blog

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Top 10 Named and Famed Sharks of Dyer Island | South Africa

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We are lucky enough to have many Great Whites visit our vessel whilst out on the water. Some of these individuals are easily identifiable due to scars, pigmentation, tags, notches in dorsal and caudal fins and also missing pieces from their fins. Some have earned names for such interesting, distinguishable features and have also been seen to have distinctive personality traits to match as well! It is my pleasure to introduce a few of our favourites:

1) Slashfin

The shark for which our vessel is named after and for good reason! This individual is a large male, approximately 4.4m in length that we have been seeing around the Island during our winter months for over 6 years now. It is a lucky day when we see this shark as it has an amazing presence as it glides by, usually only giving us a few glimpses of that famous dorsal fin!

      2) Malcolm X aka Madame X

Possibly the “Femme Fatale” of these waters! A stunning female, approximately 4.0m in length. She is graceful yet highly active and has clients asking about her on a regular basis! Easily recognisable by the bite out of her right pectoral fin, circular scaring on the right of her peduncle and a faded scar in the shape of an “X” under her dorsal also on the right side. This “X” scar is where her name came from before she was known to be female, and the name has stuck ever since!

    
3) Ninja

This is one individual whose name came from its personality. A juvenile female approximately 2.9m in length and possibly one of the feistiest sharks we have seen. Physically this shark has freckles along with some scars on her left side under the dorsal fin and a scar across her head. You won’t see this shark until the last second when she goes speeding by or flying out of the water!

    
4) Little Lumpy

A shark approximately 3.0m in length with a child-like personality, always active and inquisitive. This shark gained its name from a very interesting lump on the left side of its trunk just above its pelvic fin. This lump is mostly likely from a bite that has healed over as so. We also have a larger individual with a similar injury on its right side that we have named “Big Lumpy”!

    
5) Rosie

The beautiful Rosie is a 3.5m female, named so due to the white pigmentation on her dorsal fin. The pigmentation is known as rosi and can be seen on a lot of shark’s dorsal and caudal fins however whilst these can be used as a form of identification they can also change over time. Rosie was also tagged by Alison Towner and her research team back in April and they were able to gain some invaluable data on her movements in the area!

    
6) Phamben aka Crazy

One of the most interesting sharks to see around the boat due to its intense personality! This individual is a juvenile we saw a lot of during March and April of this year. Its name comes from the way it interacts with the cage and boat, usually coming in on the surface with its jaws agape, sometimes with no target insight! Along with this peculiar behaviour there is an interesting spot injury on its head that may possibly be the cause behind its “crazy” behaviour!

    
7) Flap

This shark is a 4.0m female whose name was coined when she was first seen with an interesting injury to her snout. The original injury produced a flap of loose skin on her snout which is where her name came from, however over time this injury has healed leaving a recognisable dent!

    
8) Anarchy

A 3.4m female and another of our acoustically tagged sharks. She was named by Alison Towner and research supporters. She is easily distinguishable whenever she is visiting Slashfin by her caudal fin which is missing its upper lobe. A great shark to have around the boat with her name very fitting as she seems to be quite rebellious and easily the cause of chaos, coming around as she pleases with quick bursts of speed and lightening fast reflexes!

    
9) Nemo

Every now and again we find “Nemo”, a large female about 4.2m in length with a disfigured dorsal fin and of course a stumped right pectoral fin, from which helped to create this name. The crew has been familiar with this shark for some years now and is still amazed at how much she has grown since first meeting her. We also have “Big Nemo” aka “Bullet” and also “Mini Nemo” a significantly smaller juvenile with a similar fin issue!

    
10) Fishing Line Shark aka Lucky

This name is possibly the least creative however there is a very good story behind it. FLS is a 3.1m female that first came to the attention of those at Marine Dynamics in early 2013 due to it entanglement in fishing line. Thankfully the Marine Dynamics team was able to free this shark and she returned later on in the year nicely healed! 

 

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 online with us and get a free video of your encounter with the world’s apex predator.

 

 

 

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