Marine Big 5 Daily Blog 13 February
Written by February 13 2024
Whale Watching near Cape Town, South Africa Welcome to Gansbaai, home of the Marine Big 5.
Trip Summary 13 February 2024:
As usual, we left Kleinbaai Harbour behind us and headed straight towards the natural estuary. Shortly after we encountered a pod of the endangered Indian Ocean humpback dolphin close to shore surfing the waves. Heading further into the bay we ended up in the Shallows where the Shark cage diving boats operate. We got a glimpse of the amazing Bronze whaler sharks at Marine Dynamics vessel Slashfin. After spending some time with this curios species we passed the Reef system, De Clyde, where we picked up some floating kelp, to bring the importance of the Ecosystem closer to our guests. Moving on we headed into the deeper ocean to see what we could find out there. We were once again quite lucky to have encountered a Bryde’s whale! Last but not least we headed over to the Island system. Cruising up and down Shark Alley the Cape fur seals on Geyser Rock were watching our vessel passing. At Dyer Island, we got some great views of the endangered African Penguins sitting on the rocks surrounded by numerous Cape Cormorants.
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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.
