Sardine run expected in Durban
Shark nets will remain out of the water in anticipation of the sardine run which is expected in Durban soon.
GET your buckets ready Durban, the sardines are on their way! There has been a substantial increase in sardine activity on the KZN coastline over the past two days.
According to Mike Anderson-Reade, head of operations for the KZN Sharks Board, netting of sardines took place on Wednesday morning at Umgababa and Illovo beaches on the upper south coast.
Five nets of about 80 crates of sardines each have successfully been caught by the seine netters and a monitoring flight undertaken by the Sharks Board earlier on Wednesday morning revealed many small pockets of sardines mostly in the mid break area of the surf zone between Umbogintwini and Ifafa beach.
“Unfortunately there is still a fairly strong 1,5m swell along the coast which has resulted in turbid inshore visibility making it quite difficult for the seine netters to spot and access the fish. The prospects for sardines to arrive off the Durban beachfront area during the next few days appear to be good however movement of these fish is always very difficult to forecast,” he said.
He said there is still an abundance of sardine associated activity south of KZN extending from Mkhambati through to Waterfall Bluff in the Eastern Cape and there is a good possibility that some of these shoals will move onto the lower south coast of KZN during the forthcoming week.
“All shark safety gear south of Durban remains out of the water at this time and the Sharks Board will continue to monitor the sardine movements and respond accordingly. After two years of no sardine run it looks very promising that we will have a better run this year,” said Anderson-Reade.
Daily updates on the sardine movements are available on the KZN Sharks Board hotline on 083 913 9495.
