Sardine Run in the Eastern Cape

By Rob Atherton

Year after year usually in the winter time of June and July in South Africa, one of natures great occasions comes about. Countless small sardines leave their breeding waters of the Agulhas Bank found in the southern waters of South Africa where the cool Atlantic Ocean and warm Indian Ocean meet. It is the coming together of these 2 oceans which make the waters perfect breeding grounds since they are loaded in nutrients.

The exact reasons why the sardine migrate far from such nutrient rich waters are certainly not well-known nevertheless they flourish in water temperatures of close to twenty Celsius. Because winter seas of the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu Natal cool, it is regarded the sardines take advantage of their enlarging area and venture north up the South Africa shoreline.

Measuring up to nine inches long, these small sardines journey in giant shoals clearly seen from the top of the sea. Often the shoals can be several km’s long and up to a kilometre wide therefore in terms of numbers, they simply compare with Africa’s other well-known migration of the wildebeest as they travel north from the Serengeti in to the Masai Mara.

The Sardine Run is really a significant event for the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu Natal. As sardines are more or less at the bottom in the food chain, it isn’t much of a surprise that when they create shoals more than a million strong that predators are usually soon on their trail. Beneath the waves, the shoals of sardine are mercilessly pursued by sharks, tuna, dolphin as well as whales. As they come under attack, the small sardines form defensive bait-balls but it’s very little protection because time and again, the predators hit the bait-balls, taking some of the small fish with each strike. There are such large numbers of sardines and predators in the sea throughout the Sardine Run that the Natal Shark Board remove the shark nets that typically protect the beaches to stop the sharks, dolphins and other large sea creatures from getting trapped and dying.

As the shoals come under assault, they’re pushed into shallower waters where they begin to come under attack from above as the sardines come within range of gannets who join in the abundant feast that nature has provided. People get in on the act as well. As sardines move to try and dodge the caravan of predators, they swim into shallow waters small fishing boats arrive the fish are literally dragged ashore by throngs of waiting people. Along with the fishing nets a variety of containers are utilized to capture the sardines by people wanting to collect as many as they are able to take.

The Sardine Run is an event of nature and therefore it is never guaranteed. There were no shows recently but each and every winter, the Greatest Shoal on Earth is excitedly expected by the individuals who live up and down the coastline of the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu Natal in South Africa.

The Sardine Run is without question one of the oceans most spectacular events.

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