SHARK CHRONICLES

Shark Chronicles 094 - Is this a dream?

2011-08-16T12:59:00.003+02:00

We were driving in the back of a truck bed, six of us stuffed under blankets and sweatshirts, bundled up with our beanies and gloves, wind whipping our hair as we drove the winding mountain side watching the African sun set behind the snow capped mountains. “Is this a dream?” was all I could think.

The past week that I’ve been living in South Africa has felt like just that: a dream. Whether we’re chumming the water to attract a great white shark to the side of the boat, or squeezing through 27 cm inside a dark cave on our bellies, or witnessing breaching whales from our survey sights, every moment has been a surreal experience that I don’t want to end. The internship days alone make the whole trip worthwhile; however the weekends make up some of the most memorable moments of my African adventure. In just one weekend, we’ve had a night on the town, a beautiful day on the beach, a hike to the lighthouse, a walk through the craft village, a morning of sliding and climbing through a cave, and an afternoon petting tiger cubs and grown cheetahs at a cat park. We are planning a trip to Cape Town and to Durban toward the end of the month, hoping to do some shark dives, a cage dive, and see some natural shark predations.

Never have I become such close friends with a group of individuals so quickly. The bonding experiences are never ending and our common interests in marine life, not to mention long hours together often in close quarters, make the interns become fast friends. We have all stepped out of our comfort zones together, making our connections to each other that much stronger.

Our field specialists have been extremely supportive on a daily basis, encouraging us to try new things and get our hands dirty. They have taught us some of the important details about field work through lectures, training, and hands-on experience. They have also offered an opportunity to those of us interested to get SCUBA certified so that we can participate in the dives during weekend trips at the end of the month.

With only three weeks left of the internship, I can’t help already hoping that this experience would never end. In Mossel Bay, you never know what might happen next, from a car breaking down and a four hour chum trip in a non-stop downpour, to spotting your first great white shark and being eye to eye with a playful tiger cub. You keep thinking to yourself, “am I really doing this?” It’s the pictures at the end of the day that help you realize it really isn’t a dream and these experiences will remain with you for the rest of your life. I could not recommend a better internship to someone who desired to pursue a career in marine field work.

Lesley Anderson - Mossel Bay Marine Lab intern

Shark Chronicles 093 - 3m Great White Shark breaches into Research Boat

2011-07-19T14:12:00.006+02:00

Mossel Bay, 18 July, 2011: Mossel Bay — The Oceans Research team, a marine research organisation working in Mossel Bay, got the surprise of a lifetime today when a 3 meter great white shark breached into their research vessel, shocking a field specialist and her crew.

Field Specialist Dorien Schroder of Mossel Bay, and six crew members had been chumming since 7:30 this morning with sardines off of Seal Island, conducting research for a population dynamics study that has been ongoing for the past three years. They had been chumming for over an hour and had a fair amount of activity around the boat, taking data on at least 4 sharks, including a shark named Pasella, which has been frequently seen in the bay since 2008.

Activity around the boat had ceased for about five minutes and all was pretty quiet at the stern. Schroder describes the incident; “Next thing I know I hear a splash, and see a white shark breach out of the water from side of the boat hovering, literally, over the crewmember who was chumming on the boats portside.” Schroder automatically sprang into action and pulled the crewmember quickly away towards the stern of the boat’s platform into safety. The crewmembers all jumped towards the stern of the boat as the 3m, 500kg, shark landed on the top of the fuel and bait storage containers. The shark had landed with only half of its body onto the boat and Schroder and her team hoped that as it thrashed it would make its way back into the water. But instead the panicked shark worked itself into the boat getting stuck in between the 1.5x2m area behind the container and boats stern. The shark began thrashing around, destroying equipment and cutting the fuel lines as it twisted and turned on the boats deck.

In the meantime, Schroder was able to calm her stressed crew and direct them to walk along the railing towards the bow of the boat to safety. Schroder immediately radioed Enrico Gennari, and Ryan Johnson, both Directors of Oceans and world renowned shark scientists about the incident. Gennari and Johnson quickly assembled a team as they raced to assist Schroder and her crew. Schroder then began pouring water over the shark’s gills consistently until Johnson, Gennari, and their crew of field specialists Riley Elliott and Rob Lewis arrived 15 minutes later. They immediately pulled their boat Lamnidae, alongside the vessel Cheetah, and climbed aboard. Once aboard they made sure that no one was injured, all crew members were safe, and the environment was secure before working their best to figure out how to get the shark back into the water quickly and safely. Johnson and Gennari secured a rope around the tail of the shark and tied the other side of the rope to the vessel Lamindae and attempted to use the side of the boat as leverage to tow the shark out of the boat into the water but were unsuccessful. They then tried this method again using Lamnidae to tow the shark off the platform through the opening in between the motors, but both methods failed. Port authority was then contacted regarding the incident and was requested to assist in getting a crane so that the 500kg shark could be safely lifted off of the boat and released. Since the fuel lines in the vessel had been cut by the shark, Lamnidae had to tow Cheetah back from the island into the harbour with the shark still onboard.

Once back in the harbour, Cheetah moored next to a fishing boat and they assisted giving the crew a water hose which was immediately placed inside the mouth of the shark so that water could further ventilate the gills. The Smit Lombok then moored alongside Cheetah and they connected one of their large lifting hooks to the rope which was secured to the shark’s tail and began to lift the shark off of the boat and into the water. The shark immediately began thrashing as soon as it hit the water and Johnson and Gennari quickly cut the ropes as the shark swam away from the stern, and underneath the Smit Lombok. The shark was then seen swimming towards the harbor mouth.

The Oceans team had hoped that the shark would be able to orient itself out of the harbour however about 30 minutes later the shark had beached itself onto a small beach inside the harbour. Enrico Gennari and Ryan Johnson returned to aid the shark in its orientation by physically trying to walk it however the shark was unable to orient itself and again veered towards the beach. The team of scientists then decided to fasten the shark to Lamnidae using two ropes attached to both the tail and behind the pectoral fins with the sharks head tilted upwards in order to ventilate the gills properly and slowly made their way out of the harbor. About one kilometer from the harbor the shark began to regain its orientation and strength and as the ropes were cut the shark powerfully swam away.

“When working with animals this large you have to take every precaution possible to ensure the safety of the scientists and sharks. However, it is impossible to predict everything that can happen. What is important is how you respond to such situation. No one was injured and the shark survived, this is a credit to our team, the port authorities and members of the community who assisted”.

Cassie Heil- Oceans Initiative Marketing Director

Shark Chronicles 092 - What is Oceans Research for me

2011-07-12T08:34:00.002+02:00

If I were given the opportunity to live through December 2010 again, I honestly do not know if I would have signed up for the Oceans Research Internship. It’s not that I dislike the experience – to the extreme contrary! Rather, being from Singapore, it is not exactly very practical to pursue shark/dolphin/whale research internship. And yet, the Oceans Research Internship has been a tremendously amazing experience for me.

When I had been accepted into the internship programme, I had expected to come here and learn about marine mammal research knowledge. However, that was a rather narrow way of looking at things. Well, it is true that working with Great White Sharks, dolphins and other cetaceans make for a pretty exciting story. It is also true that Mossel Bay provides for some spectacular scenery. However, to me, the internship experience was so much more.

When I was asked to write this blog post, I did not really know where to begin. There is already so much that I have seen and learnt. I already have close to 2000 photos (which many of my fellow interns find fascinating – but that itself deserves a different blog post), and I do not think I’ll ever run out of things to write about. Things change so fast here depending upon what research is available. What then has been unique about my experience here?

I will perhaps begin by commenting upon the way that Oceans Research try to reach out and to educate the public. They work closely with the tourism industry in town and also regularly hold talks for schoolchildren in Mossel Bay. They are also very open to collaboration opportunities and are not afraid to admit that there is so much more they need help with. This mentality means that they have offered various opportunities and ample support for students to pursue their own research projects. It also means that they have a shark aquarium (Shark Lab) that serves to bring the Mossel Bay community closer to sharks.

This feature of Oceans Research was something that I felt to be very important. Today, there is a lot of material on the Internet which is poorly supported by empirical data. As a result, people make decisions based on very inaccurate information. Researchers are the ones best equipped to quell these rumours. However, scientists have in many cases not been forthcoming about what they know. There is in particular a curious lack of scientific opinion in the journalism and media industry. Perhaps a very appropriate example is the numerous misrepresentations of sharks in movies. Sharks have largely been depicted as ferocious, bloodthirsty killers that are primitive and unintelligent (example: Jaws + Deep Blue Sea). It does not take much effort to learn that this is not true. Yet, it is an effort that few have taken; and as a result, the opinion of sharks is often skewed.

In addition, there is ample documentation relating to the damage that humans are causing to the environment. Clearly, the best way to stem such damage would be for science researchers to reach out to people. However, what we see in the world today is a lot of radical activism. Such activists demand practices that in effect would require societies to stop development – it is therefore not a practical way to address the issue.

I have only been here for a week, and so cannot qualitatively say anything about whether the work by Oceans Research has positively impacted communities around the world. Yet, there is much potential for the relationship between Oceans and the Mossel Bay community to integrate tourism, science, education and policy-making. It has been very eye-opening and exciting to see how such a model plays out in the real world.

The second feature I wanted to recount is the way that Oceans Research is open to work with undergraduate/masters/PhD research projects. As a result, I have had the opportunity to gain extensive experience in so many areas of research. Thus far, I have done seal surveys in the freezing cold morning; I have tried to identify sharks based on their dorsal fins; I have worked on projects that seek to test if shark behaviour can be conditioned. The specific details of what each of these projects entail can perhaps be read from other blog posts. What was particularly exciting for me, however, was that we as interns get to engage in interesting dialogue with the researchers – whether they are honours students or PhD experts. Field specialists are housed in the same building as interns, so the amount of interaction opportunity has been tremendous.

For me, it was exciting to see for myself that environmental research is so complex that no single study can sufficiently stand alone. Shark behaviour is dependent upon seal behaviour, which in turn might rely on the moonlight timings and city lights. In turn, everything is dependent upon environmental conditions – which are heavily influenced by human behaviour. Everything works in tandem with each other, in a circle of life.

In turn, meeting with interns from all over the world who are engaged in diverse areas of interest that somehow coincide with your own is a very exciting experience. When everyone brings their own unique experiences to the table, it tends in turn to enrich your own. Oceans Research does provide a very inviting environment that encourages people to share such unique experiences, providing for exciting and interesting dialogue. The relationships and experiences formed from this internship therefore go way beyond just simply “marine mammal research”.

As for the “marine mammal research” segment, it has been tremendously awesome! But you could probably have guessed that from the other blog posts…

Jerome Kok – Mossel Bay intern

Shark Chronicles 091 - What is a great white for me

2011-06-29T15:05:00.002+02:00

After almost a month here at Oceans, I have learned that there is absolutely nothing about working with sharks that will ever get old. Whether its assisting small benthic sharks through a maze, observing predator-prey relationships, taking pictures, recording and entering data, getting wet, being cold, hauling the anchor, bait-roping, tying bait heads, bagging hundreds of pounds of fish heads, or crushing sardines with hands and feet.

With good reason, you may wonder what one might find attractive about being elbow deep in fish guts. Particularly with sardines, because they are so oily, it takes days to remove the smell from your hands, and your clothes are more likely to decompose than ever smell fresh again. For me, this smell is more inviting than any perfume. Its not that creating fish-gut soup is my favourite activity in itself (although, at this point, I’m pretty much an expert). The thing is, at Oceans, you learn that the smell of dead fish means chum, and chum means Great Whites.

The feeling I get every time I see a Great White is no different than the feeling of excitement, awe, and utter astonishment I felt when I first saw one: Peering over the edge of our boat ‘Cheetah’ into the murky blue-green ocean I saw a shadow deep in the water. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me, but as I continued staring the shadow started to take shape. Large triangular wings protruded from the expertly shaded 3.5 meter long torpedo-shaped body. The powerful caudal tail moved only slightly as it propelled this marvel of evolution through the water with seemingly unprecedented efficiency. The shark cruised casually by the boat and eyed the bait-fish floating nearby. My jaw dropped. I had to shake my head and pinch myself. I’ve seen countless documentaries and pictures, but nothing compares to seeing this animal in real life. Its absolutely surreal - almost as if it doesn’t belong in this place or this time. It is a prehistoric leviathan, more effective than any of its ancient relatives and so well equipped that it has been able to defy nature’s merciless ways for millions of years. For me, seeing a great white is like staring into the past.

The shark was so amazing and so beautiful that I wanted to jump in the water and swim with it. Thankfully, my usually absent voice of reason chimed in and reminded me that this was still a powerful apex predator and it would probably not be too thrilled with being hugged by some starry-eyed human.

Since that first sighting, every time I see a Great White my appreciation and admiration grows. I am constantly witnessing new behaviours and new personalities. Different sharks show different levels of aggression, interest, and effort, and they all have different strategies for attacking the bait-head. Bait-roping is the strategy we use to bring the shark to the surface so that we can get photo identification and note defining characteristics. The idea is to pull the large fish head out of the water before the shark is able to bite it. Sharks come from different directions at different speeds making bait-roping one of the most intense jobs on the water. Imagine holding a rope attached to a fish that is floating in the water a few feet from the boat. The visibility in the water is less than two meters. You know there is a shark around, so you can’t take your eye off the bait. All of a sudden, out of nowhere, you see a nose, then mouth, then eyes of a Great White coming in from the left. You pull the fish out of the water just in time as the shark opens its mouth and lunges slowly. Two minutes later the shark comes from the right, a little faster this time, you pull the fish out just in time again. This isn’t so hard. The shark disappears for several minutes. Then, faster than you can react, a massive set of jaws with countless razor sharp teeth speeds in from directly below and crushes your bait. Momentum carries the monstrous shark halfway out of the water before it crashes back and starts to barrel roll, flailing its tail and splashing everyone on the boat. In a few seconds the shark is gone and you are left only with the pathetically frayed ends of your rope. Did I just get outsmarted by a fish? No, you were outsmarted by a Great White. Incredible.

I came to Oceans because I have always been simultaneously fascinated and terrified of sharks. After my time here, my fascination is through the roof, my respect is unparalleled, and my fear is non-existent. Many people have a negative image of sharks because they don’t understand them. The media likes to make sharks appear like dangerous killers because they’re top predators in a realm that is mysterious and foreign to us. Here at Oceans, we study what sharks eat, when they eat, where they go and when, what they do, how they behave, and how they think. After only a month, I feel closer to sharks than ever. I have a newfound understanding of their intricacies, personalities, and objectives. Its like with anything: the more you understand something, the less apprehension you have towards it. I now understand fully that the shark is a marvel of nature that should not be feared, but should be embraced and protected.

Brendan Sanders

Shark Chronicles 090 - I don't wanna leave!

2011-06-08T13:35:00.003+02:00

So far I have only been here for six days and it has been an absolutely life changing experience for me.

The second day I got here, I had an absolutely amazing day! We started the day at 4 am doing Seal Survey with Dorien. Yulia and I took the first shift from 4-6am talking the whole entire time and loving the bioluminescence that surrounded the seals as they swam in the water. Around 5am we saw this Cape fur seal that was staying very close to the boat and was staring at us for a while until it started flipping vertically in the water column. We had absolutely no clue what it was doing and thought it was adorable until I looked closer to the boat and saw a white shark about 4 meters long, lit up by the bioluminescence in the water, and noticed it was circling the seal. I was in amazement! I could not believe I was witnessing this happening!!! Finally the white shark gave up and swam away but that is one experience that I will never forget for the rest of my life!

Later on that day around 9am when everyone was exhausted from the day, we had a white shark breech so close to the boat that you could reach out and touch it! Everyone started screaming in excitement! When everyone had calmed down after that breech and we were wrapping up the day by finishing weather data, when another shark breeched so close to the boat; for a second I thought it was going to come into the boat! It was absolutely amazing to see a creature that massive jumping out of the water completely.

I will never forget that first seal survey trip and I still went chumming later on that day (during which we saw 14 sharks)!

I am in love with Oceans Research and Mossel Bay. I don't think I'm going to go on the plane ride home.

Sam Hagen - Mossel bay Oceans Research intern

Shark Chronicles 089 - First impact with Mossel Bay

2011-05-12T12:52:00.000+02:00

After being accepted as an Oceans Research intern I was thrilled that I would have the opportunity to work with leading field experts in marine research and, more specifically, having the opportunity to work in close proximity with Great White sharks.

Having been an active intern for a little over a week now, I can say with full confidence that Oceans Research is an excellent program for anyone looking for practical experience in field work. Every day is a series of new and interesting tasks from working in the Mossel Bay aquarium, cataloging new data, going out into the bay,chumming the water and acoustic manual tracking. The highlight so far happened when one of the most powerful and fearsome creatures in the ocean decided that it would be fun to breach close to the side of the boat while we were tracking it. And let me tell you, nothing can prepare you for the awe of being within twenty feet of a Great White.

Two days into my stay I was assigned a hands on task that involved handling a 1 meter long shark at the Mossel Bay aquarium. Unfortunately, the shark was apparently not amused, a wrestling match ensued, during which I was in the face with his tale. Fortunately, we got the data.

Being with Great White sharks is an awesome and very exciting experience. The firsthand experience is worth more than gold, and the mentoring and knowledge I’ve received from the experts is priceless. I would recommend the Oceans Research intern program to anyone with an interest in marine biology – or any other field of biology.
Also, coming to South Africa has been eye-opening. The diverse and unusual flora and fauna have been a treat. On the first day I saw an ostrich farm, elephants, a bird that was as large as a turkey that looked like a dove, and trees you would only expect to see in a Dr. Seuss illustration.

On the whole, I feel blessed by this experience and look forward to the rest of my stay here.

Bryce Colby – Oceans Research Intern

Shark Chronicles 088 - Olivia

2011-02-25T09:24:00.002+02:00

A couple of weeks ago an Italian film crew came to Mossel Bay to make a documentary on the research that Oceans does. During three days they came out on the boat with us to film us catching sharks for the aquarium, going on chum trips and tagging a shark. As a field specialist I was on the boat to help. First I was chumming and later, when Enrico tagged the shark, I was on bait rope to get the shark close enough to the boat. The Italian film crew left with great footage of the work we do at Oceans Research.

The next week we decided to start tracking the 2.2 meter shark we tagged and because I was on the boat when she was tagged I got to chose her name. A few months before I came back to Oceans I lost one of my friends, so I decided to name the shark after her: Olivia.

For almost 60 hours we tracked Olivia continuously, with the interns working in shifts on the boat. During the day we could sometimes see her when she was hanging out at her favourite spot, Hartenbos and she took us on a few trips to Kleinbrak and Seal Island.

Since the continuous track, we have tracked Olivia a few more times and the interns have become really good at tracking, skippering and taking data. One of the things I learned from my friend passing away is to fulfill my dreams and take every chance for adventure I get. Therefore, I am very happy to be back here to be a part of this research and for having an amazing experience.

Shark Chronicles 087 - Testimonials

2011-02-01T14:54:00.005+02:00

...I arrived full of excitement at the prospect of working with Great White Sharks

...The largest single impression I got upon arriving and throughout my time here, is the seriousness which is given to proper execution of duties and collection of data. The idea of it being a summer science camp is swiftly proven false. The work schedule is full and the breadth of duties is wide enough that one doesn’t get bored with any one activity too soon. I think the demanding schedule builds an esprit du corps and imparts a level of commitment throughout the entourage from ‘staff’ to interns.

...Being that close to a Great White Shark and capturing its movements through camera was more exhilarating than I could have imagined and exceeded all expectations.

...A highlight for me was getting the opportunity to take a genetic sample of a Great White and standing at the stern of the boat with my sample pole thinking what an amazing situation I found myself in.

...I like the fact that the aquarium is an integral part of the initiative as the aquarium reality does not include flashy photos of breaching white sharks, but contains basic hands on research of less spectacular, or sexy, species of marine life. I chose this picture because it shows the engagement of the interns in what is happening.

...It is not only the work that we do here in Mossel Bay that makes the internship so exciting. There is also the opportunity to take part in activities at the weekend, such as the world’s highest bungy jump, caving, ostrich riding, zip lines, game drives and of course a trip to Cape Town to do a cage dive and see Table Mountain.

...I’ve had many experiences that I will never forget. One of these was researching the Body tonic of sharks, while flipped upside-down. Surprisingly sharks relax while they are upside-down, but the reason why still is unexplained. So it is very exciting to research in an area where many is still unknown.

...I took a trip to Addo Elephant National Park, the key tourism destination in the Eastern Cape. It is the only park in the world where the BIG 7 occur together in a reserve: over 500 elephants, Cape buffalo, leopard, black rhino, lions, the great white shark and seasonal Southern right whale as well as a variety of different birds, hyena, eland, kudu, zebra, smaller mammals, and reptiles. I booked the "Sundowner" game drive and a game drive for the following morning. Both were organised by Addo with guides to show us the best parts of the park.

...This is my second time in Mossel Bay after tracking a great white for over days in 2005 and meeting Ryan and Enrico for the first time back then. I love being involved in all the work around the sharks and all the ongoing shark- and marine mammal projects.

...I have always wanted to get into scientific journalism. Oceans Research has a magazine called Beyond Blue and in our time here we were given the opportunity to do research for the magazine and even write articles.

...Oceans Research really has opened me to experiences that I would never have been exposed to and I am very grateful for the once in a lifetime opportunity. In my time at Mossel Bay and with Oceans I have learnt so much about practical fieldwork and research and have enjoyed making new connections with people and learning about a new culture.

...Overall I count myself very lucky to have had this experience and would definitely love to return one day. The enthusiasm of the Field Specialists and Researchers who have guided us this month have definitely made my experience more enjoyable and I would like to thank them also for teaching and influencing me. I am now certain that a career in the Marine Sciences is what I wish to pursue and I am looking forward to the future with the knowledge I have gained from this month in hand.

...I have received hands on training in more areas than I could have imagined. I now have a much clearer understanding for shark conservation and marine research. I feel I’m making a difference here and am gaining so much from every single day.

Stepphen, Jordan, Janette, Lucinda, Max, Greg, and Timo: January 2011 Mossel Bay Marine Lab interns

Shark Chronicles 086 - Pills

2011-01-12T14:44:00.004+02:00

White shark population research by Peter Berney

I’ve now been an intern here at Oceans Research in Mossel bay for a week but it has been such an amazing week with so many new experiences that I will never forget. On Wednesday it was my birthday and in the morning was my first time chumming for Great white sharks. We took a boat out in to the bay and after only half an hour of throwing chum into the water came the first great white I have ever seen, which was amazing, this was then followed by another eight over the course of about five hours ranging in length from around 2 to 4 meters.

Dolphin research by Lucinda Farmery

There are around six watch spots along the coastline of Mossel Bay. The one we visited was based on a hotel balcony. We scanned the ocean once every 30mins with binoculars to see if we could see any dolphin pods. This provides more of an understanding on how the dolphins move around the bay.
I have only been here a week so far, but overall I had had a really enjoyable experience. It’s hard work, but the work is rewarding. It also makes you appreciate the weekends a great deal!

Aquarium research by Jordan Housiaux and Janette Theuner

At the Ocean’s aquarium/ Shark Lab we learnt how to do water changes, how to feed the different animals and how to record data for these jobs. The one thing we picked up quickly from hanging at the aquarium that we weren’t expecting was the close relationship between the public and the aquarium staff and the importance of educating people.
Another aspect of the aquarium we enjoyed from day one was the interactions we got to have with the animals. We are using some of the sea stars to do research and we will present this project at the end of the month.

Seal research by Jessie Lee

January marks a new year for many things for Oceans Research. For one, the seal survey method has changed as of December 2010, where daytime surveys of the Cape fur seal (Artocephalus pusillus pusillus) movements from Seal Island are now done on the boat instead of from a nearby hotel rooftop, and in sectors other that the main seal movement path of Sector 2 at night. Seal surveys are now conducted in random sectors (total 6) around Seal Island, and in set blocks of 6 hours (0700-1300, 1300-1900, 1900-0100 and 0100-0700) which allows different shifts of people to have their schedules fit accordingly for the week. Changing from 24 hour blocks also means that all is not lost through bad weather. Which four time blocks we have for the week is totally random, as is our anchoring position, adding a little more variety to proceedings.
Given the opportunity to be closer to Seal Island, we can see that there are currently pups on the island, and gather incidental data regarding seal activities off the island: feeding on fish inshore of island, and some playful behaviour. Among the other benefits is that individual seals who are returning slowly are less likely to be missed than they would through binoculars from the hotel rooftop. Much is yet to be learned about seal behaviour, but having access to a boat has greatly helped with providing more data regarding their activity and consequently that of their main predator, the great white shark. Little activity is still good data even during the day when seals do not normally leave the island, and anchoring in the sectors with fewer seal movements is important so we can obtain field data (or a lack thereof) to support our previous predictions.
A total of six people are on board the vessel to take two-hour shifts in pairs observing any seal activity. Having a shift in the afternoon may make seal surveying seem like a bit of breeze, even like sunbathing on a boat. The sun’s rays are piercing and hard on the eyes without sunglasses though, and sunscreen is a must spending six hours under the sun. However, when one is assigned to a 1900-0100 or 0100-0700 shift, the situation changes drastically - people wearing as many clothes as possible and trying to find any inch of dry space aboard the boat. One lucky person may seek the cabin for shelter, leaving the rest out in the night cold of Mossel Bay. Those not asleep may be treated to the tranquillity of a pod of bottlenose dolphins swimming by in the darkness, and everyone secretly hopes to witness a white shark breach in ambush of its prey. Having the boat available during the day has allowed greater flexibility and scientific accuracy for seal survey, and it has also opened doors to embracing the field work of marine research.

Shark Chronicles 085 - Passion, inspiration and determination

2011-01-03T15:51:00.005+02:00

I never knew it was possible for one single experience to define your life until now. I have only had the pleasure of being an Oceans intern for a week now but this week has been so unbelievable that every time I try to explain it to anyone, nothing can even do it justice. From helping out at the aquarium to going out chumming for white sharks, I have learned more and experienced more in this last week than I ever thought was possible. Everything that I have done here so far has completely touched my heart in ways that are indescribable.

Even the most mundane tasks like cleaning out the turtle area gives me the greatest pleasure because I know what I am doing is making a difference. The aquarium is such a quaint and wonderful place to be. The personal atmosphere allows me to talk with interested visitors and witness their curiosity first hand. Because of the wonderful mentors and leaders of Oceans and the aquarium, I am able to answer their questions with great confidence. As we are feeding the sharks, you get to spend time with the graceful creatures where they are most comfortable and just watch in awe as they dominate their own world. Then there is doing Tonic on the small sharks. Nothing has ever made me feel so alive in my life than taking these powerful, beautiful creatures and holding them as they are completely relaxed. By grabbing the sharks and flipping them upside down, the sharks become immobilized for a brief period. This can be used for reproductive reasons mostly in sharks and humans can use it to better study the sharks. Handling each shark was so unforgettable. Each sharks seemed to have its own personality, from really chill to super active and feisty, that made me fall in love with them even more. Not only do the smaller sharks have unique personalities, but the bigger, better known ones do as well.

The first time I looked into the eyes of a great white shark here in Mossel Bay, I knew I made the right decision in what I want to study throughout my life and on coming to intern at Oceans. It is by far the most ingrained memory I will ever have in my mind. As we came across more and more of these graceful giants, I realized that they also all have personalities that make them stand out in your mind. Some are playful and will stay around for hours going for the bait line, and others will curiously come to the boat for just an once-over and then go on their way. Each time another shark came to the boat, my heart skipped a beat. Every job on the boat is a treat. Even chumming, which is as wonderful as it sounds, is rewarding. Throwing fish juice and guts overboard may not sound enjoyable to some, but as soon as the sharks arrive, you know that they are there just because of your efforts. The pay-offs are more obvious when it comes to data and photography of shark identification. The idea of being able to take observations of sharks and their dorsal fins to identify and track sharks is simplistic yet so imaginative at the same time. When everyone comes together at one time on the boat for the common goal of studying and understanding the beautiful predators that populate the area, it is truly a heartwarming occurrence. The simple observations we make can help understand the underwater world that we know so little about.

Other projects that we interns get the pleasure of working on include seal dolphin survey. Just sitting and observing the awe-inspiring animals is treat enough without even considering what scientific advances you are helping with. We all enjoy sitting on the beach, a boat, a harbor, or anywhere else and watching how animals naturally act. So doing so with the purpose of understanding them and their behaviors more not only feed your curiosity but also your sense of well-being. The main purpose of the surveys is to monitor their behaviors while in the harbor but a fortunate side affect is putting a smile on your face. Thinking about the activities I have participated in during the last week seems so very surreal to me.
One such activity was helping to transport a dead ragged-toothed shark off the beach. While my whole body felt heavy with grief when I saw it at first was overwhelming but I knew that we had to help. The shark had been caught by a fisherman, released and washed up on shore shortly afterwards. To see the impact that humans are having on these animals first hand is rather unnerving. I felt that I already was inspired to help these creatures before helping with the washed up shark, but somehow, that experience brought up a stronger passion that I didn’t even know existed. It’s as if that fisherman brought up the desire to help in any way possible as it brought up the ragged-toothed shark from the deep. What better place to have these feelings than at Oceans.

I have never felt like people have understood me or my passions for marine life as much as I did when I came to Oceans. The people are so very helpful and informative in every possible aspect imaginable. Not only are they nice to have around while doing research, but also just to hang around with in our spare time. When people with similar desires to help something come together, it becomes impossible for them not to enjoy each other’s company. I am definitely going to miss each and every person I have met here while interning and will hopefully continue these relationships built on common goals and wishes for years and years to come.

Needless to say, my experience here with Oceans Research has been one of inspiration. Like adding wood to a fire, my admiration of the ocean and all its creatures, especially sharks, has grown tremendously. I have not had one bad experience while in Mossel Bay and have experienced more than I ever thought I would. I came into this internship with high aspirations, and every single one of them has been blown away and replaced with experiences that would be impossible to get anywhere else. If in the future, anyone asks me what is the one experience that has made my life more magnificent, without hesitation, I would say interning for Oceans Research.

Kayla Melton - Oceans Reseach intern

Shark Chronicles 084 - What is research about at Oceans Research?

2010-12-24T14:21:00.002+02:00

On our day of arrival we were met by a friendly bunch of people of all different nationalities but with a common interest, the conservation and public awareness of marine life. To be honest before arriving in Mossel Bay I thought that we would pretty much only be doing Great White Shark research, which is the primary reason I signed up to be an intern with Oceans Research. However the first couple of days were too windy and were not conducive for going out and chumming for the white sharks. This was followed by a few boat engine problems which resulted in us not being able to go out on the boat for the day. It quickly becomes apparent that research in the marine environment and indeed any research in general is susceptible to last minute decisions whereby changes to the planned schedule is inevitable. This makes it interesting as plans can change at any time and you need to be prepared to adapt to new challenges.

Instead of going out on the boat, the fist few days involved doing Dolphin surveys from land at 6 sites around the Mossel Bay coastline. Edith is the Cetacean Queen here at Mossel Bay and her enthusiasm for cetaceans and dolphins in particular is awesome. The days can get a bit long when you don’t see any dolphins for several hours on end, but again this teaches you another vital attribute of any researcher, patience! After all patience is a virtue.. However it is rewarding on the days when you get to see a pod of about 40-50 dolphins moving synchronously en mass and tracking them around the bay.

On one of the first few days we were also introduced to the Shark Lab where a variety of interesting and ground-breaking research is taking place. We were fortunate enough to get involved with a study involving tonic immobility in sharks, namely the Puff-Adder Shy Sharks and Leopard Catsharks. This is when the sharks are turned upside-down and go into a trance-like state. At first when you turn them over they struggle profusely but then they eventually start to relax and you can literally feel when they slip into tonic. They lie there motionless and one would almost think they are dead as they don’t move at all except for their gills as they continue to breathe. However they suddenly slip out of tonic and start to struggle again at which point you release them and let them be. Theories differ on why sharks go into tonic immobility such as it could be an anti-predator defence mechanism by playing dead or it could help with shark copulation as the male will turn the female over whereby she wont struggle and he can get on with things. But again the research is helping to better understand why this mechanism is inherent in shark species and is aiming to identify if all sharks are capable of going into tonic as well as the main reason for this unusual phenomenon. Adam is in charge of the Shark Lab and also runs the aquarium which aims to undertake ground-breaking research while at the same time allowing the public to come and observe what is going on. Often new discoveries in science are kept among the scientists of the world, but Enrico (one of the Oceans Research Directors) explained to us that it is important to translate what happens in science into a simpler format which can be understood by the general public. This is also important as it generates public awareness which enables the public to understand why scientists do research in the first place and will ultimately lead to the more successful conservation of marine species.

About a week into our stay here we were finally able to go out on the boat looking for Great Whites. Our two intern leaders, Rob (the humorous South African-Kiwi) and Jeremy (the Californian gnarly surfer dude) took us out for the day and showed us the ropes of what to do on the boat and how to attract sharks. We started chumming and waited about 3 hours for any sharks to appear. These 3 hours were filled by Rob trying to get us to reveal things we never new about each other as well as other funny stories of past events and life in general. Just as we were about to run out of conversation 3 great whites came hurtling in towards the boat and we got our first taste of the Great White experience. It was amazing to see how graceful they are in the water, immediately putting to rest any doubt that these are mindless man-eating killers.. They pass by the bait rope with a graceful calm that you would not expect from one of the oceans apex predators, a truly humbling experience.

Our final mission before writing this blog was a seal survey whereby we anchored just off seal island and observed the movement of seals both incoming and outgoing from the island. Being out on the boat all day is an awesome experience. It’s just you and your new buddies out on the ocean observing things which people in general never see or simply take for granted.

One quickly realizes how all things in nature are interconnected and how researching various organisms enables us to better understand these interconnections and ultimately how we can enable their conservation. From just a week here the life of a research scientist seems very appealing. It’s hard work and long hours, however the work you do is very rewarding. It’s awesome to be able to contribute to something larger than yourself, and being an Oceans intern gives you the opportunity to do just that.

David van Beuningen

Shark Chronicles 083 - Not only chumming

2010-11-26T07:57:00.005+02:00

As with any research project, there are factors that cannot be controlled. Midway through this month we had trouble finding white sharks. Due to big swells and high winds we were unable to stay out for long, if we made it out at all. Instead of chumming we put in some extra hours at the office, entering tracking data from previous years and writing articles for Beyond Blue. Beyond Blue is an online magazine founded by Oceans Community. The magazine is for everyone and focuses on marine research, conservation, and exploration.

We also had a presentation by Enrico about the Great White shark research projects going on at Oceans, their findings, and the importance of those findings. He stressed the value of communicating the results to the general public and explaining how those results affect their life. Fellow conservationists and researchers make an effort to know the current issues. However, the majority of people in the world are either unaware of current issues or believe they don’t concern them. The research going on at Oceans has helped keep swimmers and surfers safe by alerting the public to where the white sharks are and when they are in the area. As disappointing as it can be not to see our beloved Great Whites, it was good to see how the work we do furthers the research that goes on to affect the community.

On the third week of our internship month we finally had a chance to do some shark tagging as well we started seeing white sharks again during our chumming trips! After a successful shark collection at Mitch’s Reef for our benthic shark aquarium in the Shark Lab, it was finally time for us to release the old sharks. The benthic sharks are kept for four months at the aquarium and then tagged and released when we collect new ones. This is part of an ongoing project to measure the population of the benthic shark species in Mossel Bay. Two of the species, the Pyjama Jacket and Leopard sharks are priority because we think their population may be threatened.

Each shark was weighed and measured and photos of their total length, mouth, and defining features were taken. Every tag that we fitted on the shark had an identification number and mailing address for ORI’s tag and release database. The tag was fitted by making a small incision anterior to the dorsal fin of the shark. For female species we always make the incision on the right side of the dorsal fin and left side of the dorsal fin for male species. It was difficult to penetrate the tough skin of the sharks, which are composed of small denticles, or teeth like scales. One through it is fairly easy to insert the tag into the thick wall of muscle that forms the sharks back.

Two Pyjama-jacket sharks and one Leopard shark were being tagged that day. One of the Pyjama-jacket was male and two other sharks were female. As the Pyjama-jacket sharks that we have were quite feisty, it took a couple of intern to hold the shark while the incision was being made. One intern took pictures of the shark during the whole process while another intern made the incision for the shark tag. We try our best to put the least amount of stress on the shark while we fitted the tag.

After all the sharks were tagged we loaded them on to the boat and took them back to the waters off Mitch reef. We are hopeful that the catch, tag and release study will provide us information on the population of benthic sharks on Mitch’s Reef, Mossel Bay.

Rachael Cashman and Karina Harum - Oceans Research interns

Shark Chronicles 082 - A Day At The Breach

2010-10-11T14:21:00.003+02:00

As we boarded Cheetah, we immediately fell into our “pre-chumming” routine. After two months together at Oceans-Research in Mossel Bay, we had become a close-knit group and by now had become very efficient at all of our boat duties. For most of us, it was our last day in Mossel Bay which also meant it was sadly our last “chum” trip. We all hoped that our last “chum” trip would be epic and all signs were looking good as the weather that day was fantastic—a light breeze from the South, partly cloud but still warm. However, we knew not to expect too much as it had been slow the past few days and even on the morning “chum” trip earlier that day. After two months at Oceans-Research in Mossel Bay, we had learned that sharks are both predictable and unpredictable.

Upon reaching Seal Island, we swiftly anchored in sector two, the area around the island most prone to predations and breaches. Then we began to “chum”—spoon after spoon of sardine oil and fish product went overboard but after an hour, “no sharks”. Someone then mentioned that it was highly unlikely that we would see sharks that day and that the sharks had probably moved across the bay towards Grootbrak. As if the sharks had heard us, they began to attack our bait rope with reckless abandon. Another case of “Murphy’s Law”—which states that when something is least likely to happen, that when is surely happens.

For the rest of the “chum trip” sharks breached, half-breached and ambushed our bait rope. In two months, none of us had seen such a display and the sharks seem more aggressive than normal. It was a great last day.

Too make things even better, on the return to port we saw not one but two natural predations. We had just pulled up the anchor and begun to head home for the last time when we saw intense splashing ten meters away. Almost simultaneously in the background, we saw another seal porpoise out of the water with fear in its eyes. Within a few minutes the action had subsided but our hearts were still racing and everyone had smiles on their faces.

It was a day that began with little promise but huge expectation and the sharks didn’t let us down. It was a day that surely everyone on board will remember for a long time to come. The double natural predation was something that most of us will probably never see again. As the sun slowly set behind us, we listened to the words “port control, port control, this is Cheetah, Cheetah, Cheetah, requesting permission to enter port” for the last time. Our day had ended but our adventure and memories will stay with us forever.

Robert Conrad – Mossel Bay Oceans Research intern

Shark Chronicles 083 - A strange new month

2010-10-11T08:06:00.008+02:00

The month of October started off with a lot of big changes, switching from 12 interns to 4 in the house. Things have quieted down a bit but there is still a lot of work being done. October 1st was a day of mixed emotions, with excitement for the new interns and some sadness for the ones that were leaving.

For the new interns orientation took place on Monday 4th October where they got to grips with the work that is expected of them at Oceans as well as familiarizing themselves with Mossel Bay.

The working week started with the upsetting news of a beached hump back whale at the Kleinbrak river mouth. However, the invaluable data that can be collected from these beachings means that samples must be taken and measurements recorded in order to determine reasons behind the stranding. The hump back whale was in excess of 15 meters in length and looked to have been dead for 2-3 days by the time the Oceans team examined it. The whale has subsequently been disposed of by the authorities.

During the week there has been a distinct lack of white sharks sighted within Mossel Bay. Chum trips went ahead as normal, however not one white shark has been spotted by the Oceans team. A potential reason is the weather which Mossel Bay has been experiencing over the past week. The sea conditions have been less than ideal, with large swells coming in from the open ocean. Whether this means the sharks have moved to deeper water in order to avoid these conditions will have to be looked into in the coming weeks.

Whilst there was a distinct lack of white sharks, to everyone’s surprise here at Oceans the starry smooth-hound, which is exhibited in the Shark Lab, gave birth to two pups. This was exciting times for everyone who is involved with Oceans Research, especially Adam Johnstone who is the lead scientist at the Shark Lab. The two pups were closely monitored for the first week of their lives and were eventually released into the bay on Friday 8th October……..Very cool!

This week also saw a visitor to Mossel Bay. Kyle McHugh came down from Pretoria university in order to expand his ideas for potential PhD projects. Kyle worked closely with Enrico Gennari and made some good progress in solidifying his project area. Kyle is planning on studying the effects of catch and release on sharks’ stress levels.

Anticipation is high for the coming weeks with plans for the tracking of white sharks to commence. Everyone at Oceans Research is looking forward to this, as it gives a much greater understanding into the movements and hunting tendencies of the white sharks here in Mossel Bay.

Michael Reynolds – Mossel Bay Oceans Research intern

Shark Chronicles 081 - Beach Clean-up Day in Mossel Bay

2010-10-01T12:12:00.003+02:00

The day started with an early morning wake up, quite tough on a Saturday but we were all keen to help out! We headed down to a local dive shop who organised the beach clean. The interns paired off and each pair was put in charge of about ten to fourteen children who all came from schools and orphanages in George and Mossel Bay.

The kids seemed very eager to get to work and were all hoping to be part of the winning team by collecting the most rubbish. Each team was assigned a different stretch of coastline between Dias beach and Santos beach to clean up. The shore ranged from beach to rocks so some areas were quite a challenge. Bags and gloves at the ready the children were set off and quickly ignored all instructions to stay together and within hearing range!

Everyone did really well and despite first impressions making us think there wasn’t much work to be done, once we started looking we found all sorts of rubbish; from bottles and cans to car tyres and even a pair of shoes. We even managed to do a bit of teaching along the way when the children discovered starfish and anemones in the rockpools.

Each group spent about two hours walking along their area and back scanning for rubbish to collect. Once we were done we headed back to the meeting point with our full bags to wait to be picked up. It didn’t take long for the children in some groups to notice the sandy beach and inviting sea just down from our meeting point and after much pleading we gave in and said they could paddle but go no deeper than to the knee. Of course the minute we said that we were left standing watching thirteen very excitable kids running screaming towards the waves and inevitably diving in completely.

About twenty minutes later they finally tired out and stood shivering in the car park in wet clothes but still not regretting the decision to swim. Whilst we were waiting they sung songs and taught us one of their games which was really nice.

The next part of the day began when we were taken back to the local Flames restaurant. The children were given some free time to rest (and dry off) and play before we went back to work; this time sorting through the rubbish bags and cataloguing the kinds of things we found, for the PADI aware database.

We were all rewarded for our efforts with some food from the braai which went down very nicely.

All in all we really enjoyed the day-we didn’t expect to be so willingly put in charge of the kids but it was very nice to be given the responsibility and so rewarding when we saw our groups enjoying themselves. The day was a lot of fun and we were very proud of both ourselves and the children when we saw the amount of rubbish that we had cleared at the end of the day. We would all be more than happy to help out again if the opportunity arose.

By Rachel Morley and Chris Henderson – Mossel Bay OCEANS Research interns

Shark Chronicles 081 - Beach Clean-up Day in Mozambique

2010-09-30T08:49:00.003+02:00

September 25th was International Beach Clean-up Day. Meeting time was 8:00 AM, which apparently translates to 11:00 AM Mozambican time -- when the young kids from the local school finally arrived. We watched a very strange video in Portuguese which was, I think, about proper trash disposal. Yara then separated the forty children into five groups of eight with a corresponding 1 km section of beach assigned to each group for cleaning. Despite not speaking a word of Portuguese, the only language spoken by the kids, I was the leader of Group Azul (Blue). We departed the lodge and headed to our transects with instructions to pick up any garbage lining the beach for an hour and twenty minutes, keeping track of what type of rubbish was gathered. The group with the most trash would be awarded a whale watching trip for the following day.

After trying to toss a couple coconuts and rocks away, the kids of Group Azul began to understand the types of trash we were seeking out and took over. They quickly moved down the transect – way ahead of me – and began making piles of all the rubbish they found and leaving a guard to stay with it and help me quantify and load it all in the bag (I was carrying the trash bag and recording paper). Keep in mind that I couldn’t speak a word to give them any instructions; they organized themselves and carried out their own plan, which was about as efficient as a plan could be. When they reached the end of the transect, way before me, they took out a football and began kicking it around while one of the girls stayed behind with me and absolutely insisted on carrying the trash bag part of the way. The discipline and work ethic of the kids, especially the girls, was unlike anything I’ve seen for people that age.

When our hour and twenty minutes were up, we met up with all the other groups back at the lodge. The kids ate lunch and played in the water while data was organized and all the piles of trash (we had to empty the trash bags into piles on the beach once they were full) were collected by tractor. The final results had Team Yellow (Steve’s Team) in last place and Team Blue in first by a long shot … well … at least that’s how I remember it. The other leaders may remember it differently, but that’s irrelevant. So we handed out prizes to all the teams and the kids seemed to like their prizes … but when it came time for the coolest prize, the whale watching trip, the first place team didn’t seem excited at all. In fact, the kids turned it down because they were all too scared! It was a problem nobody saw coming, so we had to do some prize-swapping. It all worked out because there were a few children willing to trade in their newly won t-shirts for a trip out on the water. In total, we collected well over 350 kilos of rubbish over a 5 kilometer transect in a little over an hour of work. Sort of disgusting to see it all put together, but at least the beaches look nice … for a couple days at least.

On the following day, Sunday, we took two divers out for a dive and the kids did some whale watching. They were fortunate enough to see a few whales but unfortunate enough to have weak sea stomachs. All the kids except for one, a fisherman’s son, kindly offered all the fish in the area their previous meals at some point while we were out, with much of the sickness setting in after the kids implored Jon to drive the boat “really fast.” When we returned to shore they were all smiles and seemed to have enjoyed the day and their prize of a boat trip. All in all, it was a successful weekend on many fronts.

Jon Wright (Mozdivers Zavora)

Shark Chronicles 080 - This is Sparta!

2010-08-30T07:43:00.006+02:00

Pinocchio was the first shark that we tracked, so it was exciting to see where she went when she was not at Seal Island trying to steal our bait, whilst chumming. We had to stop tracking her since Enrico decided to tag another big shark. Enrico found and successfully tagged a shark about 3.5 meters long and she was nicknamed Sparta by one of our fellow interns.

Once tracking commenced we were on the 6pm till 2am tracking shift, which was cold and very swelly, which made it even more difficult to skipper the boat, and made it a very nerve wracking experience, constantly looking out for swells if you got close to the beach and also looking out for whales. We each took it in turns to skipper the boat, track, take data and rest.

It was good to see that Sparta’s behaviour was alot different to Pinocchio’s as she stayed mainly at Groot Brak (another white shark hotpot), which is about half an hour to an hour boat drive from Mossel Bay, staying mostly in the same area and very shallow. It was frustrating at Groot Brak because of the reefs which she liked to hide behind so the signals from the tags were weakened or lost altogether sometimes. Then she headed away from the river mouth and past Groot Brak. It was interesting to try and figure out where she was heading and why. After a few hours of tracking we had to stop because she swam to far out and unfortunately we couldn’t follow, which was frustrating because we didn’t know whether she would return. The next day a chum trip went out and they could not find her. However the next day she was found, so tracking commenced again. However after a day and a half of tracking Sparta again, tracking was called off because very bad weather was approaching.

The experience that we have had here working with white sharks will be one that we will never forget. We have had the most amazing time going out on the boat and seeing sharks and even dolphins and whales on a daily basis. We would definitely love to come back again in the future and do it all over again as we have loved every second of it.

Natasha Riches and Alexandra Rosskopf– Mossel Bay Marine Lab interns

Shark Chronicles 079 - Dusky Aliwal

2010-08-30T07:38:00.004+02:00

Having been in Scottburgh for 3 weeks now, we have managed to get 13 dives in, 6 baited dives and 7 reef dives. Sadly, the water has been too cold for tigers (ranging from 19-21^oC) on the baited dives, but there have been around 25 blacktips each dive with the occasional dusky, mostly females, some of which we have managed to identify from distinguishing features like a bite wound to the second dorsal or broken jaw. Reef dives have been very successful with raggies spotted on most dives, humpback whales and bottlenose dolphins have been spotted on most dives with some amazing close encounters. With the occasional few days of bad weather we have managed to explore Kwazulu Natal and traveling up to Hluluwe and then over to the Drakensberg for a Lesotho visit and to hike the Amphitheatre. A 4 day road trip with 6 people crammed into a tiny Chevrolet may not be recommended, but it provided an amazing 4 days and plenty of banter.

Ryan Daly- Aliwal Marine Lab field coordinator

Shark Chronicles 078 - One of our own

2010-08-23T08:27:00.003+02:00

For the first time in my career as a marine mammal biologist, I saw one of my study animals dead. I've seen loads of dead whales and dolphins since I started along this path and I've identified lots of whales and dolphins photographically. But Walvis Bay is the first project I've worked on long enough, that I've got to see and get to know some of the animals as 'individuals'. We have regular of Heaviside's we know but it's the bottlenose population here (~80-100 animals) that become like old friends after a while. The majority of them are easily identifiable and I've had a particular fondness for the mothers in our population, which are frequently seen together, so it was a little sad finding one of them dead on the beach.

Animal T-017 was first seen by us in June 2008 with a small calf and on several other occasions during out pilot study.

She wasn't seen at sea during the summer field season of 2009 but was one of the 19 animals which stranded in the lagoon in March, were tagged with seal flipper tags and rescued. She was actually tagged twice on that day, the first time was unsuccessful and left a partial hole, the second time went all the way through. Since this time she has hardly been seen at all in the bay area.

She was seen in the winter field season (Aug 2009) with her tag still in her fin, not seen in the summer of 2010 and only once in the current winter season.

Then, a dolphin was reported dead on the beach north of Swakopmund a few weeks ago and when we went to investigate, it turned out to be one of 'our' bottlenose dolphins, T-017.

She was fairly decomposed, and had a few shark bites along her belly. It's impossible to tell if these occurred before or after death, but judging from their size are probably from a bronze whaler shark which are common along this coast.

So..we've lost a mother from this population. We kept the skull and from the teeth, it may be possible to age her one day.

Simon Elwen - Skeleton Coast Marine Lab director

Shark Chronicles 077 - What is the sound of one manta breaching?

2010-08-23T08:14:00.002+02:00

Even though Zàvora isn't the place to see whale sharks – tourist haven Tofo a couple hours up the coast is – they do come sometimes. Unfortunately I was unwell in bed the day the divers got to snorkel with one en route to the 'Great Wall' dive site... this is the way things are in nature and you must take every chance you get so you don't miss something amazing! Seeing a manta ray breach and belly-flop back into the water is also something special and I've been lucky enough to see it from a few different angles when I happened to be the only one looking out from the dive boat in the right direction. I can't say that it looks very graceful but it sure is spectacular!

So it's two thirds of the way into my August internship at Ocean Research's amazing Zàvora station and I feel like I've been here forever, but not long enough! Fellow intern and Scottish divemaster Erin has taken a special shine and talent to arranging our manta ID photos (and a large backlog as well) and examining which mantas we might be seeing repeatedly. I have been enjoying the extra opportunity to undertake the Global Reef Check training course with Yara which I can highly recommend, and includes the special Mozambique Reef Check that Yara has designed with relevance to the particular marine life on the coast of this beautiful country.

As a tourist dive operation has only really been operating here at Zàvora for less than 2 years it is a great area case study and chance to establish some baseline data of the previously untouched, for all intents and purposes, marine region and ecosystem, and to observe and analyse the effect that increasing dive tourism is having on the area. Especially to see what measures can be taken to ensure sustainable development of the local recreational diving industry and avoid negatively impacting the local marine life. For example, implementing a no-glove stance on dives here has already been helping discourage unnecessary, and often unconscious, touching of marine substrates and creatures.

Last Tuesday we went to the local school to talk about turtles. It is prohibited in Mozambique to hunt turtles and their eggs, but many locals do not know this, or even knowing so don't realise the detrimental impacts such practices have. Erin and I were surprised and impressed at the receptiveness of the pupils to Yara's teachings, who were apparently too shy to speak up when she first began with this particular class several lessons ago. In contrast the children were chirpy, attentive and even thrilled, so it is encouraging to know that important messages are getting into the community this way. Watching Yara explain and act out the turtle life cycle, including egg-laying, is not something to forget, and standing in a circle clapping and shouting “Tartaruaga!” (turtle in Portuguese) while each of the children and us took turns dancing centre stage like a turtle was more fun that I'd like to admit!

It really is an exciting place to be involved in such research and community outreach because the results of the programs implemented here will prove useful for future developments in other 'untouched' areas of the world. Yara's work and involvement with local coastal management groups, government and otherwise, is very important for this region and it is exciting to be able to assist her with it. As Jesse mentioned last month, wintry July/August is not great for viz, but it is a great time to get scientific research experience without the peak season hecticness and also to experience the beauty of humpback whales up close on an almost daily basis.

If you want to gain research and life experience in a place which is a little off the beaten track, in a country I think you will fall in love with as I have, definitely check out the Zàvora internship with Oceans Research! Do know this, the need for minimum advanced open water certification is vital; for example you'll want to have fairly refined buoyancy control skills to be able to take useful nudi ID photos in strong surge. Also, learning a little Portuguese goes along way... even though most of the dive shop staff can speak and understand English, it always helps melt the ice and connect with others in at least one of their native languages (the others usually being Chopi, Bitonga and/or Shangana dialects).

So, not only have my Portuguese speaking and diving skills improved and I've finally been able to get back into the rigid inflatable boat by myself after dives – I'm a little infamous for my lack of such ability amongst my dive buddies back in Australia – but my own passion for marine conservation has been stoked even more and I have in my mind a much clearer idea of the path I will take in that regard and, through my time and work here, have taken a few more steps toward.

Back to amazing experiences: floating on your back while a manta birostris with a 5.5 metre wingspan glides less than a metre above you - too close to take the belly ID photo you are trying for - would probably be the one that sticks out for me. While I've been lucky enough to see mantas before on the Great Barrier Reef, the number and proximity has paled in comparison to here. Also, it doesn't hurt that almost every boat ride out to and in between dive sites involves a few to several humpback whale sightings, and sometimes spectacular breaches up close. I could get used to this!

Christine Chan – Oceans Research Zàvora intern.

Shark Chronicles 076 - A brand new first month

2010-08-08T12:09:00.002+02:00

As our ten-person car stuttered along the beautiful coastline of Mossel bay towards the Ocean’s Office & House, feelings of excitement and nervousness began to set in.

The first day or two seemed like a blur. On the first full day we woke up at seven, had orientation, socialized, and then explored the facets of our new research environment. By the third day, most of us had gotten the hang of things and it felt like we had become seasoned veterans---although maybe these sentiments were due to the fact that we hadn’t slept much.

For about half of us, our first chum trip provided such spectacular events that five hours on a rocky boat went by as if it were fifteen minutes. Almost immediately upon our arrival to Seal Island, a wounded seal greeted our boat, eliciting queasy stomachs, and a feeling that we might be in over our heads. Ten minutes later the wounded seal was gone. What the sharks didn’t finish off, the seagulls slowly and surely did. Although we were initially inclined to stare at the remnants of the injured seal, it was time to start the real work---chumming, data taking, photography, and probably the coolest, bait roping. Great White Sharks were even more magnificent in the water than they had been in any pictures that we had seen. We felt both amazement and utter respect for the sleek, agile and fast animals. Just when it seemed like the chum trip couldn’t get any better; we heard a loud splash on the port side of the Cheetah. It was predation. No one except for Dylan was prepared for what we saw next. While half of us cheered for the shark, the other half prayed that the baby seal would get safely back to the island. After a minute or two, the outcome was clear as the water turned blood red and the splashing ceased almost as quickly as it had occurred.

By the end of the week, everyone was more than ready to have a few days off. After all, a twenty-four hour seal survey will take its toll on anyone---except for our resident Italian, Michele, who managed to stay awake for over a day. From sitting on the Cheetah and listening for seals coming and going in sector two, to watching from a “snipers nest” at the top of the Diaz Strand hotel, seal survey definitely required patience.

While the seal survey was an exciting experience, at the very least it was also a long, arduous, and uncomfortable one for some. The seal survey from the boat was broken up into shifts, and ours was the night shift. Just when we had succumbed to sleep after the previous day’s duties, we were awoken in order to board the boat. It was a beautiful cool and crisp night, a stark contrast to the previous blizzard-cold nights previous groups had endured. Those that were on-shift utilized any night-vision senses they were equipped with in order to listen and spy fur seals coming and going from Seal Island. While the Cheetah boat was an excellent vessel for chumming, it did not have the best sleeping accommodations. Many of us played musical chairs in the attempt to find good sleeping positions. The cubby, in the steering wheel compartment of the boat, seemed to be the warmest and most comfortable area of all. Half of the boat seemed to be rooting for a breach; the other half hoped that all seals would make it through their journeys unscathed. Although a breach would be an exciting event, for this half the seal’s safety was more valued.

And to top off the week, everyone also managed to have a little social time. Despite thinking that going out would be a leisurely event, it soon became clear that going to Carouse, the only and best nightclub in Mossel Bay, required dance skills and a lot of energy. Dylan impressed even the locals with his excellent and exotic dance moves!

Overall, the first week at Ocean’s was excellent. It started out with a little apprehension but after seven days in the intern house, everyone seemed like family. The excitement of doing groundbreaking research and the experience of seamanship culminated in making the first week a very memorable one.

Robert, Katie and Brittany - Mossel Bay Oceans Research interns

Shark Chronicles 075 - Life in Zavora: the small adventurous Lab in Mozambique

2010-08-05T14:17:00.002+02:00

You wake up around 7AM from the sunshine beaming through your window and make the decision of whether you want to make breakfast or not. Then head up to dive shop to get some tea or coffee. Dive planning with customers and kitting up takes about an hour and change. After a short ride down to launching area to launch boat and you are in the water off to an offshore site. Winter water temperature pushes 22 degrees Celsius and hopefully the sun is shining to make the ride out pleasant. Offshore dive sites yield potato bass, eels, turtles, rays, etc. Usually one intern is performing a survey on diver impact during the dives while the other is watching for mantas, ready to photograph and identify it. After a surface interval we hop in for second dive, usually at an inshore site.

The visibility in Zavora during my stay has not been the greatest, with most dives having about 5-7m visibility. I am told that it can reach up to 25m in the summer. One special thing about the winter is the arrival of the humpback whales. We constantly hear them while diving and some are lucky enough to glimpse them while underwater. Seeing them constantly on the surface was a daily treat and pods reaching 6 or 7 can be seen during the winter. Inshore dives have mantas usually and they are quite spectacular to say the least. Wingspan reaching over 7m max as thy glide over you, just checking you out.

After diving, we head back to wash gear and dry it out. Eat lunch, take a nap, sunbath, until heading back to dive shop sometime after 3PM to input data. Need to wait till then due to the power shutting off from noon to 3pm. The silence when the generator goes off is a gift. After this, the rest of the day is yours. Whale watching, dive classes, socializing, dinner in or out, enjoy the beauty of Mozambique.

Traveling to Zavora for my short stay was one of the best choices of my life. Immediately being thrown into Mozambique culture on arrival and then the atmosphere of Zavora was great. Zavora is a relaxed place where everything runs on “African Time.”

The work here at Oceans is interesting and absolutely necessary for this area. The diver impact surveys supply data and information that can eventually help the conservation efforts for the beautiful reefs. None of the work is especially difficult from an intern’s standpoint, but it is interesting and fun most of the time. Yara recently started studying nudibranchs (sea slugs). These vividly colored, tiny creatures are loads of fun to search for and take great macro pictures of.
Personally, the best part of the trip for me was the people I met. Most of those people who live permanently here are some of the most interesting, experienced and funny people I have ever met. I just learned so much in such a short time from so many people especially from Jon (Mozdivers) and Yara.

A journey to Zavora yields great friendships, experience, eternal knowledge, and loads of good times.

Jesse Alpert - Oceans Research Zavora intern

Shark Chronicles 074 - Etosha National Park… a small taste of Eden

2010-08-02T08:16:00.002+02:00

Although we enjoy greatly the aquatic fauna of Walvis Bay (Namibia), we were quite happy when Simon accepted to let us have 3 days off in a row, which allowed us to visit the one of the world’s greatest wildlife reserves: Etosha National Park, 20 000 sq km of inland protected habitats, around the Etosha Pan, a huge flat and saline desert that is transformed in a lagoon during the rainy season.
Having spent a night in a camp site near the park, we leave on an early morning and enjoy the sunrise entering the gate. Only a few minutes later, giraffes, zebras and springboks are already shining in our eyes… The time flows as we explore the bush and grasslands and discover their inhabitants: grass eaters like blue wildebeests, impalas, oryx, steenboks, jackals and ostriches are very abundant. The predators and the bigger ones are of course more difficult to spot. We face up to the challenge and with our budding biologists nose, we find a horde of 40 elephants having a communal bath in a waterhole, a leopard chilling under a bush, one lioness and her three cubs sipping quietly some water from a pond, as well as an immense and solitary elephant crossing the road nonchalantly. We rushed through the exit door under a beautiful “Etoshan” sunset, in high spirits and satiated. We drive back to Walvis Bay on the next day, looking forward to meet our sea-friends again.
This week-end was just a part of our epic journey that we interns have been undertaking here in Namibia for more than three weeks, experiencing an untouched, although elusive, “wild” wilderness.

Lucille

Shark Chronicles 073 - First Shark Lab's experiments

2010-07-27T17:32:00.003+02:00

It’s been an active week at the aquarium. We wrapped the preliminary trials for the shark metabolic studies. The study was truly a group effort with all of the interns spending many a midnight hour camped out in the aquarium’s wet lab anxiously attempting to count gill movement on a swimming shark with a solitary red headlamp.

For the initial protocol, one male and one female shark were kept in isolation for several weeks, and after feeding to satiation, we monitored gill movement rates and time until feeding response to establish baseline metabolic rates for the sharks over a range of different temperatures. Preliminary results were as expected, with both sharks showing faster feeding response times in warmer temperatures. While there are still all the standard little glitches to be ironed out, the trials themselves were a great success as they should provide valuable insight into the set up and operation of future wet lab studies.

This week also saw the official beginning of the Shark Labs’ participation in the national Oceanographic Research Institutes’ tag and release program. After taking measurements and collecting a photographic record of the sharks we were prepping for release: each shark was fitted with a plastic tag with an individual identification number and mailing address for ORI’s tag and release database. Then the two pyjama sharks, two puffadder shysharks, and two smooth hound sharks were loaded on to the boat and taken back to the waters off Mitch reef, where they were returned to their natural environment. While we were sad to see them go, we are excited and looking forward to the possibility of collecting important information about their population size, habitat use, and growth rate in the future.

Since an empty aquarium is never good, Saturday was spent on a collection run. A team of two snorkelers and two divers worked to collect new sharks using chum bags to draw them in, while hoping the scent didn’t attract anything too big to the location. Seal Island was only a few hundred meters away after all! Luckily the trip was a success, with three leopard catsharks, two puffadder shysharks, and one new pyjama shark added to the Shark Lab’s guests. After spending the evening acclimating to their new residence our guests were catalogued, measured and ready to begin work! Their first assignment – a new study comparing the ease of induction and total duration of tonic among the different species found locally, and the potential for using tonic induction as a tool for handling and working with the sharks in the Lab.

Shark Chronicles 072 - Stranding season continues

2010-07-26T08:46:00.002+02:00

It seems to be a season of many strandings. On Wednesday this week a humpback whale was reported to us by Neels Dreyer to be stuck in shallows of the harbour in front of the fishing factories. The NDP team and John Paterson (Albatross Task Force) responded promptly and got on site to find several divers from Walvis Bay diving already in the water trying to guide the animal out to sea. After a little discussion with the TunaCor security officers to assure them we were there on legit business, John, Gwen Penry and I got our wetsuits on hopped in the water with the divers to help with the rescue attempt.

The whale was clearly unwell, covered in cyamids (whale lice), had a broken dorsal fin (probably from hitting into the jetty, it definitely wasn't a propeller cut) and was clearly disoriented, swimming at an angle, holding its head up and only going in circles. With much pushing we occasionally got the animal out of the shallows but it kept turning back to come lie on its belly. We attempted to the tow/guide the whale out of the shallows with help from the Walvis Bay diving boat, but although it got out a little way, it again came back.

The WBD boat had to leave but we got in two more boats from Mola Mola Tours and Henning DuPlessis (a local oyster farmer). These larger boats were more successful at pulling the whale further out of the jetty area, and eventually managed to get it past the moored ships. With some great driving by Rudi Hass and Eddie of Mola Mola and Henning - they managed to keep the whale from turning back to the shallows and guided her out in the deeper central bay area (last photo).

Once in the deeper water the whale paused to reoriented it self and seemed to wake up and head off strongly northwards. We were all hopeful that it was going to make it but unfortunately, on Thursday, the whale was reported re-stranded on the west side of the bay near the pump station.

The decision was taken at this point to let nature take it's course. Strandings are sad, but natural events and you can only perform so many rescue attempts (which are quite stressful for the whale) before admitting defeat.

I've put in some photos below, most taken by Lucille Chapuis, (one of our July interns) of the rescue operation in the harbour.

A big thankyou to Walvis Bay Diving, Mola Mola tours, Henning du Plessis and Tunacor for their help.

Shark Chronicles 071 - Skeleton Coast Marine Lab

2010-07-26T08:39:00.003+02:00

Hello! My name is Caroline and I am currently an intern at the Namibia Dolphin Project. I arrived here on the 1st of July from the UK. The view as I flew from Johannesburg to Walvis Baywas beautiful and consisted of miles of desert as far as the eye could see. I was met at the airport by Simon and after meeting the other interns and staff, I was soon feeling settled in and started learning how to grade dolphin photographs. This is important as only high quality photos are used to identify individual dolphins. The next day, on land survey duty, I caught a glimpse of my first bottlenose dolphin, which surfaced about 10m from shore. After teasing us with two short appearances, it then promptly disappeared. On my next land survey a few days later, we came across a whole group of bottlenose dolphins close to shore. We watched them wave riding, took as many photographs as we could and spent the next few hours tracking them from the beach to monitor their social interactions and general behaviour. This proved to be more difficult than it sounds - you don’t realize just how fast they can swim unless you are running alongside, trying to keep up with them!

On our day off, myself and the other interns went kayaking with wild seals at Pelican Point. The seals were adorable and were very intrigued by us and our brightly coloured kayaks. They were constantly swimming over to take a closer look and there were even a few attempts to steal our paddles! We saw a number of jackals as we drove through the desert and were amazed to witness a stand-off between a jackal and a fully grown seal. The jackal won the fish prize in the end but the seal didn’t give up easily!

While out on the research boat we encountered a whole group of Heaviside dolphins, inccluding two mothers with calves. I will never forget the sight of a baby calf swimming alongside the boat right beside me. However, the highlight of my first week here has to be the sight of a humpback whale surfacing about 5m away from the back of our boat. The noise of it blowing out as it surfaced made everyone on board jump with shock, especially as we were all expecting it to come up about 500m away in a completely different direction. I have had so many incredible experiences here in just a week and I am eagerly looking forward to the next few weeks!

Shark Chronicles 71 - Raggies at Aliwal

2010-07-23T13:36:00.006+02:00

Since the last time we blogged, the weather has greatly improved and we were able to go back to diving! Last Saturday and Wednesday, we did two “shark” dives. The visibility has gotten much better, which is really helpful for the measurements we are trying to do on the blacktip sharks. We have been using two lasers and a video camera to determine the sizes of different individuals. Meanwhile, some of us are taking notes on distinctive features of some individuals so we can identify them later on.

We have also been trying to determine potential feeding behavior and hierarchy among the blacktips with the help of an HD camera. James free dives to the bait drum, gets 4-5 sardines and throws them away from the bait. We are then filming the feeding behavior of the sharks and hoping to see dominance from certain individuals.
Despite the good visibility and the lack of swells and currents, the water temperature has been pretty low – around 21°C -, which is probably why the tiger sharks are not showing up to feed.

We also went back to the site called “Raggies’ Cave,” and used the lasers to determine the average size of individual ragged-tooth (raggies) shark. There was very little current, which was really helpful for taking the measurements and pictures. On Monday, we had the opportunity to dive the Nebo shipwreck, sitting at approximately 30 meters deep. We got to explore inside the wreck, which was pretty fun! There were no sharks to be seen, but a lot of rockfish, scorpion fish, lobsters and a lot of juvenile fishes using the wreck as protection. A big cuttlefish even came our way during the dive and we got to observe the fast-changing colors of this animal.

The marine life on the Shoal is very interesting and abundant; we had the chance to see some loggerhead sea turtles swimming around us during the dives, but also common dolphins or humpback whales swimming along the boat.

We had a “day-off” last Friday, so Ryan and a couple of us drove to Durban to go to the Sharks Board. The Sharks Board has been designed to educate people about sharks present in the region, such as tiger, ragged-tooth, oceanic blacktips, hammerheads, bull, whale and even great whites. They do shark dissections on some days but not on Fridays unfortunately! We also went to the big uShaka Aquarium, which is set up in a shipwreck. We had a really good time, discovering the marine life of the whole East coast of South Africa. We were already impressed by the size of the ragged-tooth sharks we see during our dives, but the ones there were gigantic!

We now have a couple of days off before the start of our last week here in Scottburgh. We are probably going to use this time to organize our data, finish the reef-check certification or even perfect our surfing skills!

Christina Marmet - Aliwal Oceans Research intern

Shark Chronicles 070 - Aliwal Marine Lab

2010-07-16T10:27:00.003+02:00

Since arriving in Scottsburgh, we have gone on seven dives in about 10 days. Three of the dives have been tiger dives, where we have encountered 20-25 blacktips on each dive and have spotted one juvenile tiger. The blacktips are abundant and we have had some close encounters. We are currently looking at population numbers, sex ratios, size and behavior with these sharks. Getting interaction with the tiger has proven to be a little more difficult but we are talking about the apex predators of that area thus often elusive.

The other dives have been on some beautiful reefs in the area and on the Produce shipwreck. On the Cathedral site we counted 8 to 9 raggies and we able to get fairly close to them despite poor visibility. The beauty of diving with raggies is the absolutely no need for chumming to find them. We can encounter them in their natural habitat and able to observe their behavior. It was almost a little eerie entering the murky cove at Cathedral with seven raggies swimming in and out of the shadows around us.

Recently, we have had some bad weather that hasn’t allowed us the launch the past few days. On the days we can’t dive, we have started a Reef Check course which will allow us to learn certain indicator species and take surveys to help determine the overall health of the coral reef.

Shark Chronicles 069 - The longest white shark manual tracking ever done

2010-06-30T12:08:00.003+02:00

Last week (22-26 June) we tracked Pinocchio, a 2.3m female great white shark with two continuous tags providing us information on her swimming depth, water temperature at that depth and muscle temperature, every second. After a lot of cold nights and long days we managed to break the current record for continuous manual tracking of a great white. Our new record is 106 hours.

What will stay with me the most about this tracking is especially the night with dense fog: when there are no orientation points around, you really have to rely on each other and work together to make sure you do not lose the shark or get too close to shore.

Liesbeth

My dear lady Pinocchio,

Thank you for having let us track your movements during 106 hours… and access that way a bit of your secret life. It does probably mean nothing to you but it is a giant leap for us! Not only for science but moreover for our own sense of achievement: only with these can we fully realized what such things as team work and spirit really mean. Hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. You deserved your bloody seal that last night. Keep in touch,

Lucille

Tracking is truly a learning curve. Not only do you learn how to use the equipment, but you learn how to work well with others to perfectly map the movement of the creature we all came here to study. You learn to fight through the cold, wind and rain with more layers, 9 on top and 5 on bottom. You learn to laugh at the hiccups at 2am when you haven’t seen daylight in 3 days and hot cocoa is all you want. But what an experience! The communication you must have with your team grows into this amazingly well oiled machine. This is Marine Science and I love every minute.

Cory

Tracking white sharks is an experience I will remember for years to come. Every shift was a new experience to learn and a new challenge to face. You learn to rely on others as they rely on you as well. Definitely the best part of the track was when we were tracking in very thick fog. Working as a team to keep the shark close by while dodging all sorts of hazards was a blast. Wouldn’t trade anything for it in the world.

Aaron

Pinocchio was the first white shark that I experienced when chumming, so it was fitting that she was the first one that I tracked. She was so fun to move around with and hypothesize of what she was doing and why. I will follow you anywhere, Pinocchio!!!!

Kat

I had so much fun tracking Pinocchio. It really brought me closer to people in a way I never expected. I have to admit it was a little annoying to hear the beep for hours on end but the scariest moments were when the beep left us. I have never felt happier and more defeated all in a 10 minute time frame. Tracking just gives you a little more info into the secret lives of sharks. I will miss Pinocchio and here little upturned fin. She is really an amazing creature.

Amy

Thanks to the whole team: Adam, Kim, Rabi'a, Amber, Cory, Amy, Lindsay, Liesbeth, Lucille, Aron, Kat, Karen, Carolyne, Maddy, Martha, and a special thanks to the amazing interns managers Rob and Dylan.

Shark Chronicles 068 - Seal surveys and late-night predations

2010-05-29T10:12:00.001+02:00

Not every moment spent at the Oceans research station in Mossel Bay can be devoted purely to the chumming and tracking of great white sharks. In order to fully understand the hunting and feeding behavior of these sharks, it is necessary to spend some time looking at the driving factor behind their actions; the seals (actually sea lions) of Seal Island. Seal surveys are completed anywhere from once a month to once a week, and consist of one, 24-hr long survey period. The end result of one survey will be a complete day’s worth of seal activity, from when they leave the island to feed, to when the stragglers, sluggish with digesting fish, return back to their island home. Over the years, the observations from these seal surveys have shown the researchers at Oceans that the seals are transitioning from very active periods during daylight hours, to almost solely nighttime activity. As a direct result from this shift in activity, the great whites of Mossel Bay have been found to also shift their hunting hours to a more nocturnal schedule. What this means for us dedicated seal surveyors, is the possibility to spot a nighttime act of predation from the great white. I know I speak for more than just myself when I say that this rare opportunity is what drives us to stay awake and vigilant at 3am in the morning, while wearing five layers of clothing and four pairs of socks (and day-dreaming of our much warmer beds on land).

We just completed our most recent seal survey during the hours of Wednesday night and Thursday day. Much like our survey last week (and surveys before, I’ve been told), the seals did not stray from the island during daytime hours but were incredibly active once darkness fell upon the bay. I was fortunate enough to be placed on the nighttime survey period of 1am – 7am, and much like last week, seals were actively leaving and returning to the island throughout the night. Most seals traveled in large groups comprising of 5 or more seals (in order to reduce the odds of being a shark’s dinner), but every now and then a daring seal would take off into the night all by itself. Although I personally find these seals to be amazingly cute, I found myself attentively staring at these individuals, praying for a white shark to breach out of the water and claim it’s dinner. Finally, at 3:36am, a group of 2-3 seals were in the midst of passing by the boat when a great white suddenly breached out of the water and sent the seals flying. The shark was relatively small (~ 2m), and the breach looked somewhat unsuccessful, but I still woke up the entire boat by yelling “BREACH” over and over again until everyone was watching the action. It was the first time that I had witnessed a great white breach, and reliving that moment over and over again in my head was what sustained me for the following four hours of surveying, that and the occasional lone seal setting out to be a possible white shark feast.

Lindsay L. Graff – Mossel Bay, Oceans Research Intern

Shark Chronicles 067 – Tracking Pinocchio

2010-05-12T16:09:00.003+02:00

Having arrived in Mossel Bay just a couple of days previously, Monday morning found our group of new interns chumming for white sharks just off Seal Island. Having been prepared to spend an hour or two waiting for our first glimpse of dorsal fin, we were almost unprepared when, within 10 minutes, the first shark appeared at our bait.

This arrival was greeted with a flurry of activity; recording data on the shark (particularly noting physical characteristics) and taking photo’s of the dorsal fin to record the pattern of notches that appear on the fins trailing edge – all to be used for identification should we encounter the same shark at a later date.

This shark was soon followed by a second female. It was decided that this second shark provided a good opportunity for tagging, as she was in the target range for the size of sharks wanted for data collection (at approximately 2.5 metres), and seemed interested in the bait enough to keep her around the boat long enough to get all three tags in her before she moved away. The shark was named Pinocchio as preparations for tagging were made.

The first tag was designed to measure the internal body temperature of the shark, from inside the stomach. The tag was prepared inside the body of a tuna that was then offered to Pinocchio. After a couple of cursory passes of the bait she took the tuna, effortlessly tearing it from the bait float.

The remaining two tags were applied simultaneously, via a modified spear gun, to the shark just below the dorsal fin. The first was also designed to give body temperature data, but this time from the white muscle tissue, and the third gave external (water) temperature as well as information on depth.

Data from the tags was collected from each tag, via a unidirectional hydrophone, to a box known as the VR100. This registered each data receipt with an audible ‘ping’ that would come to govern our lives over the next few days. The stronger the signal (dependant on the direction and distance of the tags, and hence the shark, relative to the hydrophone), the louder the ping – this was the information that allowed us to judge the sharks position and track her movements.

The first sets of data from the shark were confusing – the shark appeared to be in two places at once. It was apparent that rather than swallow the tuna, she had spat it out. We anxiously followed her movements with the remaining two tags and hoped that she would return to finish her meal, while a replacement stomach tag was prepared. Eventually, she returned to the boat and was offered a second tag laden tuna, which she duly took and consumed – resulting in a mass of high fiving and a very excited crew on the boat!

Having successfully tagged the shark, the personnel on the boat was swapped out. We returned to shore, and the first tracking shift kicked into gear. I went home to get some rest and prepare for my tracking shift, which was due to start at 2 o’clock the following morning.

2 am found us back at the tracking boat. Our shark had moved away from Seal Island, and was cruising slowly near the moth of Kleinbraak river. The high oxygen content of the water near the river mouth makes an ideal environment for a resting shark. The shark spent most our 7 hour shift cruising near the coast in shallow water.

Spending the hours of darkness on a small boat with the constant ping of the VR100 and the lights from shore was quite a surreal experience, interrupted occasionally by Enrico and his riddles! There were four of us on the boat, rotating between spending an hour tracking, piloting the boat, collecting positional data, and resting. The South African sunrise signalled that our shift was close to an end way before we felt ready to return to shore, but before long the next shift had been ferried out to our position and we were heading home.

2 am again, and our second shift saw us following Pinocchio back towards the island with some urgency – it must be time for breakfast! Our conclusions that he shark was hungry was backed up by the swimming pattern of the shark, as it took a yo-yo pattern moving from the surface to deeper water in it’s search for fish.

The shark circled Seal Island before we ‘witnessed’ it’s first meal since it took our tuna. I use the word ‘witnessed’ loosely as, although we did not visually observe any predation we were able to track it’s effects on the stomach temperature of the shark, which we saw take a dramatic drop as the shark ingested a mouthful of cold water with its meal. It may be rare to witness a shark predation, but how may people can say they’ve tracked the stomach temperature of a feeding white shark?

After breakfast, the shark returned to it’s river mouth, and to resting.

Morning three, and our ongoing tracking activities are threatened by an incoming storm. Pinocchio spends much of her time resting around the river mouth. At the end of the shift we are beginning to feel the effects of the storm and decide to continue tracking, rather than ferry out the next shift for potentially just an hours tracking before the boat is forced back to port. The shark seems to sense the changing water conditions also, and begins to move along the coast. Our additional hour tracking eventually turns into 6, but our extra efforts are rewarded as we catch up with the shark at the surface, and watch her swim by the side of the boat – the two external tags clearly visible against the dark back of the shark. We were now tracking visually as well as acoustically. Unfortunately, hampered by the rapidly worsening sea conditions we lost contact with the shark. A brief search proves fruitless, and the conditions mean that we could not track the shark again if we were to find her. We turned the boat round and headed back, through the growing swells, to a very well earned beer (or 2)!

Chris Pulham – Mossel Bay Oceans Research intern

Shark Chronicles 066 - Road trip

2010-04-19T15:18:00.006+02:00

Last weekend, April 10th and 11th, the four interns got their first weekend off of the month. Jethro, Leisbeth, Rodney and I, Renae, decided to go for a road trip to Cango and the surrounding towns. The road trip was a meshed of ascents and incomprehensible phrases. The dive only took about an hour to get to our first destination, Cango Caves. The caves were a labyrinth of stalactites and stalagmites with curvases that the guide reassured the group that we could squeeze through. It was a team effort of pushing and pulling to get through the small, sweaty cracks of the caves to emerge into the nice breeze. Back on the road the four of us went to an ostrich farm. Since we were only an hour out from home we decided to head back home and continue our journey the next day. The drive home was so beautiful. The sun was setting over the mountains and streaked nice hues of orange, pink, red and purple over the land.

Day two of the journey started with us driving down the highway when Rodney, who was the driver, swerves to avoid an object in the road. We had all seen the signs that warn drivers of the desert tortoises but here it was actually walking down the highway at an incredible slow rate. Car stopped and we got out and rescued the tortoise from certain road kill obliteration. I am sure there were heads turning from passing cars watching four people run down the highway after a tortoise. After we did our good dead for the day we actually headed to the Cango Wildlife Ranch. Our guide Kevin took us through the park explaining the particular animals, their habitats and their plight in the wild with poaching and loss of land. Kevin seemed to take a liking to us interns. He was interested in our studies and how diverse the group was, in nationalities and interests. I think also Kevin enjoyed the fact that he had a group that also appreciated animals and understood how important conservation is.

After the Wildlife Ranch we headed home, taking in the beautiful landscape with our eyes and our cameras. That was our weekend adventure: Caves, Ostriches, Coffee, Wildlife and fun. This was a great opportunity to get closer to the other interns that I have been working with.

Renae Logston - Mossel Bay OCEANS Research intern

Shark Chronicles 065- We love you Pasella

2010-03-12T12:18:00.003+02:00

Working with Oceans here in Mossel Bay is an amazing experience. We are currently a group of four interns, Rodney, Rachel, Jethro and myself, Nick. I flew directly from my cold country to the warm and more attractive climate of South Africa. I have only been here for two weeks and I already made a lot of wonderful experiences.

On my very first day I had the opportunity to assist to a shark dissection performed by Enrico Gennari for school kids. Enrico is one of our Directors and a friend of Michael Scholl, which is the person who told me about Oceans in the first place. (Thank you Michael)

Apart from that, Rachel, Rodney, Jedi and I have been working quite a lot at the aquarium. We got a little Smooth-hound shark a couple of weeks ago and Adam is really taking good care of her. Adam is a great guy, he is so involved with the aquarium. He is usually spending most of his time down there trying to fix the pumps or what ever else goes wrong. He also saved a lost pinguin a few days ago. This little guy probably wanted to be an explorer or something, who knows. At least he is safe know. And so is our lovely Smooth-hound shark.

Another highlight of my time here was the first time I caught sight of the most impressive and probably beautiful creature I have ever met before, the Great White. These creatures are breath taking and they really inspire you respect. The other day, Rodney was on the bait rope while Jedi, Rach and I were on data and pictures. We were all talking together and enjoying this unique moment when a great white suddenly emerged from nowhere and slapped our boat with its caudal fin. That was a little remainder so we keep in mind that we are actually studying one of the most efficient apex predators ever. These animals are just perfect.

The shark you can see on the article’s photo is called Pasella and she’s a real warrior. She got these huge scars on her body and she is also incredibly smart.

As you can see we have a lot of work but being here is also a lot of fun. And waking up at 6 o’clock in the morning to go out at sea is not really a burden. Everyone is just really nice and I met a lot of really cool people.

Shark Chronicles 064 - A brand new year!

2010-02-17T09:45:00.003+02:00

The first two weeks of February have been a week of arrivals of departures of personnel. February 1st brought the arrival of four new interns. The interns spent their first day on the Shark Warrior – a tourism cage diving vessel. We collect data on this boat once a week. On this day, 7 sharks amazed the tourists and Ocean Research staff for hours with their presence. One by one the interns entered the cage to observe the sharks underwater, while the other two interns continued to collect data. It is an experience that cannot properly be described in words but must be experienced.

All the sharks are amazing and each is different. The most interesting things I saw this week, other than the sharks feeding from underwater, was the shark breaching out of the water and playing with a banana peel floating at the surface of the water. Shortly after the arrival of interns, the two directors, Ryan and Enrico, departed for the International white shark symposium in Hawaii. After they present some talks and posters on our research and soaking up the Hawaiian sun they will be back later in the month. Just another tough task for shark biologists. All joking aside, these international conferences are an important way to communicate cutting edge research to other experts from around the world. So we are very happy Oceans Research is participating, as knowledge has great utility if it is widely known and used.

On days not on the boat, we are sitting on the cliffs and hills of Mossel Bay looking for marine mammals. Given that whale season is over, we expect to see mainly bottlenose, humpback, and common dolphins. Yet the reason you go out to monitor, is you never know what you will get. Rodney and Edith saw two humpback whales as they survey the bay from the Mossel Bay lighthouse. The whales were a mother and a calf that were slowly travelling around the bay, which provided lots of interesting tracking data. On the day, I participated we saw 40 bottlenose dolphins and all 6 of the resident humpback dolphins of Mossel Bay.

So it has been a whirlwind first week for everyone and it leaves you just wanting to get back out there. The adventure begins again tomorrow morning on the research vessel Cheetah to pursue our research on the marine mammals, seals, and sharks of Mossel Bay.

David Delaney, Ph.D. – Mossel Bay OCEANS Research intern

Shark Chronicles 063 - Final week of November

2009-12-10T12:47:00.002+02:00

The final week of November was also the final week for several of the interns.

Starting out with a seal survey on Sunday night that all went according to plan, the week carried on to be shark-filled and gloriously sunny.

It was evident to all of us that the sharks had come back to the bay to bid us farewell, seeing at least four sharks per chum trip with over ten one afternoon! There was a noticeable increase in the average size of the sharks we were seeing in comparison to Octobers chum trips, with the same 3-4 metre sharks revisiting the boat almost every day. Despite the need for data all across the bay, everybody desperately wanted to chum right by the Kleinbrak river mouth, as this was where the sharks were lingering.

An injured seal was found on the rocks near the aquarium, but there was no evidence of a shark attack…supporting the fact we had seen no sharks around the island in a while.

Our intern manager, Amy, went home on Thursday, and Friday was the final chum trip for our other intern manager Jonathon, during which they saw 11 sharks…so not a bad send off at all! That evening was the “grand finale” for most of us, with dinner and speeches for everyone.

Once the weekend came round, the week seemed to have flown by and the house was getting emptier and quieter.

The week was rounded off on Sunday with a trip on Shark Warrior, where 3xe (Trixie) came to play and put on quite a show for the tourists. Seal survey again on Sunday night, but the sea was calm and it was a pleasant way for us to say goodbye to the bay and the island…

Rachel Walls (OCEANS Research intern- Mossel Bay)

Shark Chronicles 062 - A brand new day

2009-11-16T14:22:00.003+02:00

Mossel Bay had turned into a ghost town with no sharks to be seen for about one month. The Oceans Research team were starting to get worried, with the occasional 2.5m passing through Grootbrak but no sign of shark activity at the island since September 29^th; where have they gone?! Whilst watching the seals play around in ‘shark-free’ waters on a seal survey, the team suddenly jumped with joy and screams of delight could be heard everywhere as the first predation in over a month was witnessed close to the boat. Feeling desperate several other interns got up at the crack of dawn in hope to see the sharks at the island on a chumming trip with their intern manager Jonathon. With no real hope the omni directional hydrophone was lowered into the water at 6.30am and to everybody’s surprise onboard a ‘ping ping ping’ was heard, 3xe was back! Chum slick abandoned the team pursued the shark across the bay as she headed to Kleinbrak. Interns back on land were alerted and started preparing for the long tracking shifts ahead.

Jonathon’s team remained at sea for twelve hours in glorious sunshine, for what turned out to be a beautiful day for tracking. In addition to 3xe the tracking team were delighted to see several sharks circling the boat, of which two were bigger than any they have seen since September, measuring nearly 4m in length! Mid afternoon the second tracking team, skippered by Stef, came to relieve the first shift and started to chum in hope of feeding 3xe a replacement stomach tag because she had regurgitated the original one some time in September. Unfortunately she showed no interest and did not go up to the boat, so Stef decided to pull up anchor and begin to track. Shortly after the second team were forced back to harbour as the winds picked up. Not wanting to desert the tracking, Amy and her team went back out to sea as soon as the wind died down that evening. Once 3xe was relocated the third team started tracking her as she swam circles at the Kleinbrak river mouth. Being on the only stretch of coastline in Mossel bay with no lights onshore and the sun long gone, the only light available was that of the bioluminescence and the GPS.

For almost two days, 3xe remained at the river mouth and tracking continued successfully until late Thursday night when winds picked up again and a storm was brewing. With the numerous sharks viewed swimming through the breakers by the daytime tracking shift chum trip have restarted with a new hope of collecting data on the sharks that have returned to Mossel bay!

Rachel Walls and Chelsea Bradbury – OCEANS Research Mossel Bay interns