While on an above water sanctioned trip to South Africa this past June, I managed to squeeze in one day below the surface. We had the pleasure of going out with Terry from Shark Warrior Adventures and do a little freediving in their playground. I was surprised to find how similar South Africa’s waters are to ours here in southern California! Including their sharks! Not only are they home to the sevengill too but also have a similar species of houndshark called the Spotted Gully Shark! I was SO excited at the opportunity to see a new shark to cross off my bucket list!
The Spotted Gully Shark can be found in shallower waters and tend to prefer sandy areas near rocky reefs. Their diet consists of crustaceans, bony fish and cephalopods. They have been known to chase their meal almost onto the shore! The females will carry their litter of six to twelve pups for a period of 20 months, giving birth between the months of May and August. As a result of its slow growth and reproductive rates, it is a concern that they are vulnerable to overfishing.
Terry found numerous Gully Sharks for us during our excursion. It was awesome to see them gracefully maneuver around the kelp forest. They are skittish, like our leopard sharks, and tended to bolt if they noticed us dive down to try and swim with them. Since this was an unplanned adventure, I didn’t have my normal underwater camera setup. But we did take some clips with the GoPro and my iPhone 8+ in an AxisGo Housing! Hope you enjoy the clips below!
Any shark prints purchased will have a portion of proceeds donated to Afrioceans who focus on education initiatives to help save the ocean and Shark Allies who are dedicated to the protection and conservation of sharks and rays and the ocean realm they live in.
Contact Me for more information on prints or visit the Shark section on my website: www.underwaterpaparazzi.com/sharks
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