 |
MOSSEL BAY - Shark viewers are reporting a large number of sharks in Joubertsdam, Mossel Bay, the shallows area where the Great Whites move during the summer season.
"Plenty of familiar faces are around with several of last month's sharks still in the bay," says Oliver Jewell of the Marine Dynamics shark viewing outfit. "Temperatures have been pushing towards the 30°C mark we're looking forward to seeing some nice summer weather later in November. There are still several large sharks in the area, the largest being around 3.5m!"
According to Jewell the "sharks of the month" are undoubtedly two individuals now called "Woundy" and "Jill". Woundy, a 2.8m female with a deep wound on the left side of her tail, between the second dorsal fin and the caudal, was first seen in Mossel Bay in February of 2009 where both the large wound and her feisty temperament made her the most notorious shark in the area.
"Bait handlers beware! She's now in Joubertsdam and will certainly keep you on your toes!" says Jewell.
"Jill", a large and dark female (about 3.3m in length) was first sighted in September 2007. While wowing their clients with a dominating display of power and grace Marine Dynamics resident marine biologist Alison Towner asked the guests to name her. One of them propsed that the graceful animal be called after his ex-wife Jill.
"Betty" was also a welcome sight this summer. First seen in 2007 and named because of a large parasitic wound underneath her right eye, she is currently around 3.2m in length and the wound appears smaller with each return she makes to the area.
The Southern Right whales are reportedly also in good form, and Jewell says his shark viewing groups have regularly encountered a white calf accompanied by its mother. On another occasion they had a mother whale tail slapping repeatedly while her calf breached.
More shark viewing and whale watching information is available at Marine Dynamics
