SARDINES

Umkomaas & Aliwal Shoal

My final few days in South Africa were spent just south of Durban in the town of Umkomaas which is close to the famous Aliwal Shoals. Located about 30 miles south of Durban, Umkomaas is a small town that seems to be there primarily for the diving industry and I stayed at the Aliwal Dive Centre which had accommodation on site. This suited me fine as diving in KwaZulu Natal generally starts early and is finished by lunchtime as by then the sea has started to get a bit too rough.

Diving is normally from RIBs (Rigid Inflatable Boats) so groups are small and it’s a bit of fun getting to and from the dive sites. I prebooked 3 days diving (2 dives a day) and arrived around 6:30pm the night before where I met one of the Divemasters and a couple of other lads who were staying at the centre. After I put my luggage in my room, we went around the corner for something to eat before crashing out as it was an early start in the morning.

Aliwal Shoal has a reputation as one of the best dive sites in the world and is a hot spot for sharks so having spent the previous week viewing land predators, it was the turn of the their marine counterparts. The briefing was straightforward and we were soon off out to the first dive site. The marine life viewing started in spectacular fashion before we even reached the dive site with 3 humpbacked whales appearing close by so we took time to head over to them and took a few pictures. Soon they disappeared from view leaving us with the classic ‘whale tale’ view so on we headed to the dive site.

Diving on Aliwal Shoal tends to always involve a current and is always affected by surge so overall, its not ideal for taking photos. However, its something I always try to do and the area is particularly well known for rag-tooth and tiger sharks. My last dive had been in August last year so I started taking pictures of fairly mundane marine life just to get the camera settings correct. By the end of the 2nd dive, I had managed 6 pictures that I was happy with including a small scorpion fish that I nearly put my hand on, a paper fish which I’d never seen before and a turtle.

The following day, the sea was pretty rough with swells of around 3m, not ideal for me as I suffer a bit in small boats. Given the surface conditions, I was a bit surprised that underwater, it was better than the previous day. I managed to get pictures of a Manta Shrimp, a couple of Ramoras (the long thing fish that normally attach themselves to sharks), a video of a Rag-tooth Shark and a turtle eating some soft coral. All in all, it wasn’t a bad collection of pictures but back on the surface, I was a lot less comfortable and was very glad when we got back on dry land. A cooked breakfast and nice cup of tea soon sorted me out ready for an afternoon of laziness.

My third and final days diving saw the best conditions so far. The sea was very flat and visibility under the surface was much improved. Just prior to jumping in, we found a number of dolphins who predictably disappear as soon as the cameras were ready. Never mind, we had 50 minutes underwater ahead of us and in we went. As the previous 2 days, there was a surge and a current but there was also a variety of marine life and I managed to get photos of Potato Cod, Clown Fish, Sea Snake (back half), Scorpion Fish, Moray Eel and a partly hidden Octopus.

Not bad and we were soon back on board heading back to shore. However, June/July in KZN sees the annual Sardine Run and there had been reports of a large shoal about 100km south of us. On the way back we say some activity to the south and headed over to investigate. There we found a small shoal of sardines being attacked by a number of sharks. We also noticed that more and more fishermen were appearing on the coast. The arrival of the Sardines is a big event each winter and they are remorselessly attack by predators from land (humans), sea (dolphins, tuna, sharks, whales) and the air (gannets and other sea birds).

I decided to abandon the 2nd dive of the morning as I wanted to see something of the Sardine Run before I left. I had my breakfast, showered, changed and headed back to the coast. Most of the parking places and vantage points were busy by now and more people were arriving all the time as word of the sardines spread. After a while, I went back to the dive centre and they suggested I head further south so off I went and all along the coast road were fishermen parking up and I also saw people selling sardines from buckets that they had obviously caught earlier that day. Unfortunately, I didn’t see any ‘David Attenborough’ type action with regards to the Sardines but it was interesting nonetheless and I did get to see a little bit more of KZN.

The following morning, I enjoyed a bit of a lay in before the mammoth task of trying to pack everything into my suitcase. Over the last 2 weeks, I’d been given so many things it was a real challenge to get the suitcase closed, never mind under the 23kg limit. However, I eventually binned quite a lot of unwanted paper and the suitcase seemed quite light although the true test would come at check-in and the risk of excess baggage.

Before I left, I handed over the last of my England replica football shirts which were greatly appreciated. We often don’t realise just how hungry people all round the world are for English football so if you travel to these places and have some old football shirts that you no long want, passing them on to people in places like South Africa will be greatly appreciated. I checked out and as I had a few hours to kill before my flight, I headed up to a shopping centre just to the north of Durban for some last minute shopping.

The Greatest Shoal on Earth

Every year during the winter months of June and July in South Africa, one of natures greatest events take place. Millions of little sardines abandon their spawning waters of the Agulhas Bank located in the southern waters of South Africa where the cold Atlantic Ocean and warm Indian Ocean meet. It is the coming together of these two oceans that make the waters ideal spawning grounds as they are rich in nutrients.

The exact reasons why the sardine migrate away from such nutrient rich waters aren’t known but they thrive in water temperatures of around 20 Celsius. As the winter waters of the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu Natal cool, it is believed the sardines take advantage of their expanding territory and head northwards up the South Africa coast. Measuring up to around 9 inches in length, these little fish travel in massive shoals clearly visible from the surface of the ocean. The shoals can be several kilometres long and up to a kilometre wide so in terms on numbers, they easily rival Africa’s other famous migration of the wildebeest as they head north from the Serengeti into the Masai Mara.

The Sardine Run is a big event of the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu Natal. As sardines are pretty much at the bottom of the food chain, it isn’t much of a surprise that when they create shoals more than a million strong that predators are soon on their trail. Under the water, the shoals of sardine are mercilessly pursued by sharks, tuna, dolphin and even whales. As they come under attack, the little fish form defensive bait-balls but it is little protection as time and again, the predators hit the bait-balls, taking a few of the little fish with each attack.

There are so many sardines and predators in the water during the Sardine Run that the Natal Shark Board remove the shark nets that usually protect the beaches to prevent the sharks, dolphins and other large sea creatures from getting caught up and dying. As the shoals come under attack, they are forced into shallower waters where they start to come under attack from the air as the sardine come within diving depth of gannets who join in the bountiful feast that nature has provided. Humans get in on the act too. As the shoals move to try to escape the caravan of predators, they move into shallow waters small fishing boats move in the fish are literally dragged ashore by crowds of waiting people. As well as the fishing nets all sorts of containers are used to scoop up the sardines by people trying to gather as many as they can carry.

The Sardine Run is a natural event and therefore it is by no means guaranteed. There have been no shows in recent years but every winter, the Greatest Shoal on Earth is eagerly anticipated by the people who live up and down the coast of the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu Natal in South Africa.

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