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Sardine Run South Africa 2010: Death From Above And Below

South Africa’s annual Sardine Run sees millions of sardines spawning and travelling northwards up the country’s eastern coast – closely followed by thousands of dolphins, sharks and gannets all anticipating a feast…

A pod of dolphins charge through a sardine baitball
A pod of dolphins charge through a sardine baitball

Imagine being dropped into 18 degree green water, with 2 metre visibility, and just about making out the glint of a large baitball of sardines in front of you. Then imagine the constant sound of gunshots overhead – but it’s not gunfire, it’s the deafening crack gannets make as they divebomb from the sky above into the baitball to effortlessly snatch a sardine 10 metres down and then shoot back to the surface. Then imagine seeing six dolphins coming straight at you, so fast that trying to move would be pointless because collision is inevitable, only for them to corkscrew away at the last moment with laser guided precision. And just as you get your breathing under control again, the sharks turn up… that was essentially my experience of South Africa’s Sardine Run in July 2010.

A baitball of sardines shifts in unison as a shark noses into it
A baitball of sardines shifts in unison as a shark noses into it
A gannet plunges in from above to catch its prey whilst a shark twists past
A gannet plunges in from above to catch its prey whilst a shark twists past

Despite all the video I’d watched and photos I’d seen, nothing prepared me for the sheer sensory overload of being in the water during the Sardine Run. Everything happens so fast – and all at the same time – that it’s almost impossible to consciously follow the sharks, dolphins and birds swirling around the baitball a couple of metres away from you. They weave in and out in a split second, on the edge of vision one moment then right up close the next and then gone the next.

Two sharks make a baitball of sardines scatter around them
Two sharks make a baitball of sardines scatter around them
Dolphins scatter a sardine baitball while a gannet attacks from above
Dolphins scatter a sardine baitball while a gannet attacks from above

Was I scared? Absolutely, but not to the point where I wouldn’t get back in the water. The adrenaline rush of being able to witness this incredible spectacle (and this was considered a so-so Sardine Run by repeat offenders, not a vintage year) was enough to keep me going back into the water, although every time I floated on the surface before submerging I half expected to get a divebombing gannet embedded in my skull. Watching them thunder in from above and zero in on their prey, leaving a white wake behind them as they sped down and then back up was mesmerising. There are plenty of dead birds floating on the surface of the water above the baitballs to show in-water collisions with something much bigger and more lethal than a sardine does happen.

A shark comes in from below into the sardine baitball
A shark comes in from below into the sardine baitball
Dolphins shoot up through the sardine baitball in a sudden attack
Dolphins shoot up through the sardine baitball in a sudden attack

There were truly incredible numbers of dolphins present during the five days we were out chasing the sardines – we literally saw scores of them breaching the surface and circling our boat each day, their playful nature on the surface in distinct contrast to their piledriving purpose under the water as they herded and then routed the sardines.

Sardines shift as a shark comes into the baitball from below
Sardines shift as a shark comes into the baitball from below

As for the sharks… they were far more languid than the dolphins, preferring to languidly circle the baitball before eventually making their lunge into it. Tellingly the deeper you went, the more sharks there were… And they were circling all around the baitball and also us, the divers. At one point I felt something nudging my side and decided that I wasn’t even going to look what it was – the shock might make me drop my camera.

Gannets seize sardines underwater
Gannets seize sardines underwater
A shark noses into a large sardine baitball
A shark noses into a large sardine baitball

As you can imagine, it was a truly memorable experience – even if it was hard work at times. Not every day saw us finding action underwater, although there were plenty of breaching humpback whales to keep us entertained on the surface. Even so, being stuck on a small boat for 7 hours in pitching seas when you’re wet and cold while waiting to find something, anything, can stretch the definition of “fun” quite far. That said, I would go back and do it again like a shot and my only regret on leaving was that I hadn’t signed up for the second week of diving.

The trip was organised by Jason Heller at DivePhotoGuide.com who is a truly lovely guy to hang out with – laid back but hyperorganised, and very generous with advice on photography. (Follow the link above for some of his incredible Sardine Run images. You’ll notice that Jason’s photos have a lot more light on their subjects – that’s because he wasn’t a wuss like me and got a lot closer…).

I will certainly be joining Jason again on another trip, not least because the rest of our group was a pleasure to dive and hang out with too. The boat and dive operation was handled by Walter Bernardis, pioneer of diving with tiger sharks on the Aliwal Shoal and widely regarded as the best skipper to read and navigate the vagaries of the Sardine Run – he can watch a humpback whale submerge on the surface and then give you a countdown to the split second when it will breach out of the water – absolutely amazing. Walter’s own site is African Watersports.



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My Recent Dive Trips

  • November 2024: Similan Islands liveaboard, Thailand
  • October 2024: Forgotten Islands and Banda Sea liveaboard, Indonesia
  • August 2024: Komodo and Saleh Bay liveaboard, Indonesia
  • May 2024: Similan Islands liveaboard, Thailand
  • April 2024: Sogod Bay, Philippines
  • February 2024: Similan Islands liveaboard, Thailand
  • January 2024:Gangga Island Resort, Indonesia
  • December 2023: Similan Islands liveaboard, Thailand
  • Mejangan Island, Bali
  • October 2023: Similan Islands liveaboard, Thailand
  • June 2023: Raja Ampat liveaboard, Indonesia
  • April 2023: Maldives liveaboard
  • April 2023: Similan Islands liveaboard, Thailand
  • February 2023: Similan Islands liveaboard, Thailand
  • December 2022: Raja Ampat liveaboard, Indonesia
  • December 2022: Similan Islands liveaboard, Thailand
  • August 2022: Komodo liveaboard, Indonesia
  • June 2022: USAT Liberty shipwreck, Bali, Indonesia
  • April 2022: Stonehenge, Koh Lipe, Thailand
  • March 2022: Manta Rays at Koh Bon, Thailand
  • January 2022: Richelieu Rock liveaboard, Thailand
  • March 2021: HTMS Chang and Alahambra Rock liveaboard, Thailand
  • February 2020: Similan Islands liveaboard, Thailand
  • December 2019: Raja Ampat liveaboard, Indonesia
  • October 2019: Malapascua, Philippines
  • June 2019: Sogod Bay, Philippines
  • April 2019: Tulamben, Bali
  • December 2018: Sogod Bay, Philippines
  • December 2018: Anilao, Philippines
  • October 2018: Moalboal, Philippines
  • October 2018: Malapascua, Philippines
  • July 2018: Tulamben, Bali
  • May 2018: Raja Ampat, Indonesia
  • April 2018: Sogod Bay, Philippines

My Less Recent Dive Trips

  • May 2017: Apo Island and Dumaguete, Philippines
  • April 2017: Tubbataha Reef, Philippines
  • April 2017: Sogod Bay, Philippines
  • March 2017: Triton Bay, Indonesia
  • March 2017: Raja Ampat, Indonesia
  • September 2016: Tulamben, Bali at Alba Dive Resort
  • August 2016: Cenderawasih Bay on Damai 1
  • April 2016: Sogod Bay at Sogod Bay Scuba Resort
  • February 2016: Raja Ampat and Banda Islands on Damai 1
  • April 2015: Anilao at Crystal Dive Resort
  • March 2015: Myanmar and Similan Islands on Thailand Aggressor
  • May 2013: Similan Islands on Thailand Aggressor
  • April 2013: Tubbataha Reef on Discovery Palawan
  • January 2013: Komodo, Indonesia on MSY Damai
  • August 2012: Cenderawasih Bay, Indonesia
  • April 2012: Similan Islands and Southern Thailand liveaboard
  • January 2012: Similan Islands liveaboard, Thailand
  • August 2011: Hanifaru, Maldives
  • June 2011: Tubbataha Liveaboard Hans Christian Andersen
  • April 2011: Similan Islands and Southern Thailand liveaboard
  • April 2011: Carpe Vita Liveaboard, Maldives
  • March 2011: Lembeh Strait, Indonesia
  • December 2010: Menjangan, Bali
  • July 2010: Tofo, Mozambique
  • July 2010: Sardine Run, South Africa
  • May 2010: Sangalaki / Derawan, Tambora
  • March 2010: MV Flying Seahorse, Similan Islands
  • March 2010: MV Orion, Southern Maldives
  • January 2010: Big Blue Explorer, Palau
  • November 2009: MSY Damai, Banda Sea Liveaboard, Indonesia
  • October 2009: MSY Damai, Komodo Liveaboard, Indonesia
  • October 2009: MV Orion, Maldives Liveaboard
  • September 2009: MV Scubanet, Koh Losin, Thailand
  • May 2009: MSY Seahorse, Banda Sea liveaboard, Indonesia
  • March 2009: Sachika Liveaboard, Maldives
  • February 2009: Daytrips, Koh Lanta, Thailand
  • January 2009: MV Jazz, Burma (Myanmar) Liveaboard

Back In The Day Bragging Rights Dive Trips

  • November 2008: Borneo Explorer, Visayas Liveaboard
  • September 2008: S/Y Siren, Komodo Liveaboard
  • August 2008: Ocean Rover, Sulawesi Liveaboard
  • August 2008: NAD Lembeh Resort, Indonesia
  • June 2008: Koh Tao
  • March 2008: Maldives, Bandos Island
  • February 2008: MSY Seahorse, Raja Ampat Liveaboard
  • January 2008: MV Jazz, Burma Liveaboard
  • October 2007: Bali Dive Safari
  • September 2007: Davao, Philippines
  • July 2007: Great White Sharks, Rodney Fox Liveaboard
  • June 2007: Big Blue, Palau Liveaboard
  • May 2007: Whale Sharks at Exmouth, Australia
  • April 2007: Borneo Explorer, Tubbataha Reef Liveaboard
  • December 2006: Komodo Dancer, Komodo Liveaboard

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