Marine Big 5 Daily Blog 04 March
Written by March 4 2024

Whale Watching near Cape Town, South Africa Welcome to Gansbaai, home of the Marine Big 5.
Trip Summary 04 March 2024:
After not being able to head out to sea yesterday we are back and ready to head out to sea again. Even though we left Kleinbaai Harbour in quite a bit of an overcast and some light rain, guests and crew alike were excited to see what we might encounter! We headed straight towards Uilenkraal, the natural estuary of the area. As it is a quite popular hangout spot for several marine species we started our lookout from there. Luckily, shortly after we spotted one of the endangered Indian Ocean humpback dolphins and some rafts of the endangered African Penguins in the water! Cruising down the coastal area we made our way into an area called the Shallows. We stopped by Marine Dynamics Shark cage diving vessel Slashfin where we got to see the incredible Bronze whaler sharks. After spending some time with them we continued our tour through the reef system, De Clyde, and made our way towards Geyser Rock, the Cape fur seal colony. Being welcomed by numerous seals we entered Shark Alley, cruising up and down watching the seals laying on the island, playing and cooling down in the water. Once it was time to say goodbye we made our way into deeper waters for the rest of the trip.
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What species did we see today?
Bronze Whaler Shark Bronze Whaler Shark
The Bronze whaler (also known as Copper sharks) here in Kleinbaai are very curious and interactive. These sharks eat mostly fish, with sardines being one of their favourites.
African Penguin African Penguin
As one of only 17 penguin species left in the world (and the only one on the african continent), the african penguin often breed in offshore colonies, such as Dyer Island.
Cape fur seal Cape fur seal
With a local population of 60,000, it's no wonder our guests capture so many photographs of these wonderfully playful marine mammals.
Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphin Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphin
Humpback dolphins are an endangered species, with small populations living very close to shore, typically in water less than 25m deep and an average home range of 120km. Their proximity to land makes these animals particularly vulnerable to human influence.
Cape Cormorant Cape Cormorant
One of the most famous species of Cormorant in the Western Cape, the Cape Cormorant is well known for it's beautiful turquoise eye and impressive size.