Sharks wary of Fish Hoek shores

The Cape's much-feared great white sharks have met their match.

Jittery sharks appear to be keeping well away from a state-of-the-art "exclusion net" at Cape Town's Fish Hoek beach, according to results of a lengthy trial.

However, there was one notable exception - a great white that swam right up to the net to get a closer look.

Lead researcher Alison Kok gathered data of shark movements in the Fish Hoek bay using "shark spotters" positioned on the Fish Hoek mountainside.

Of the 18 great white sharks spotted in the bay on days when the net was deployed, the vast majority stayed at least 200m away from the net. Only two moved to within 100m and only one went right up to the net.

The same behaviour was observed among bronze whale sharks.

"It could just be coincidence that they stayed far away - the net does only cover a very small area of Fish Hoek. We need to do more research," said Kok.

The research confirmed what local fishermen have known for years - that Fish Hoek is remarkably rich in marine life.

"I don't think people realise how productive Fish Hoek is. On top of the sharks, seals were often seen in the area," said Kok.

"Seals jumped over the net and on two occasions chased fish against the net, possibly making it easier for them to catch them. Dolphins were also regular visitors to Fish Hoek and between May 2013 and May 2014 dolphins were recorded 57 times, often hunting schools of fish. On six occasions, dolphins and white sharks were present on the same day."

The success of the net is good news for Fish Hoek, which suffered a drop in visitors following several high-profile shark attacks over the past decade, two of them fatal.

The 340m-long net, deployed and retrieved from the shore, is made of fine mesh that does not trap marine life, unlike the nets deployed off Durban. It is anchored on the sea bed and pulled into place by boat.

But the design is ill-suited to the rough sea conditions along most of the South African coast, including other shark hot spots such as Durban and the infamous Port St John's second beach - now considered the most dangerous beach in the world after 10 attacks over the past decade.

KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board spokesman Geremy Cliff welcomed the success of the Fish Hoek net, but said it was not a practical design for most other sites.