Sharks Board to ‘listen in’ on shark movements
Acoustic listening stations will be placed at strategic locations between Richards Bay and Port Edward.
THE KZN Sharks Board is working on a project to fit sharks with acoustic transmitters and set up listening stations along the coastline to monitor their movement patterns.
One of its research objectives is to gain a better understanding of the movement and residency patterns of potentially dangerous sharks along the KZN coastline.
Of interest is how the movement patterns of sharks are related to environmental parameters such as water temperature. This information is crucial not only in minimising the risk of shark attacks at both netted and non-netted beaches, but also in enabling the board to make informed decisions on the deployment and location of shark nets to reduce the catch of harmless animals.
To achieve this goal, the board is developing a project which will involve deploying a network of acoustic listening stations and temperature loggers at strategic locations along its area of operations between Richards Bay and Port Edward, and fitting sharks with acoustic transmitters. The tags emit an unique coded signal, which can be detected by the listening stations up to one kilometre away. Data downloaded from the stations can be used to build a picture of when and where sharks are present.
To help the project and links to other national research initiatives, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed with the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity and the South African Environmental Observation Network.
One of the key focus areas of both these national research foundation institutions is long-term research that contributes to a better understanding of coastal systems. For the past eight years, the joint ventures have included establishing a variety of research platforms, which have included the Algoa Bay Sentinel site.
The signing of the memorandum of understanding formalises the collaborative research partnership, which already exists between the KZNSB, SAEON and SAIAB. It provides an ideal platform for the sharing of resources including equipment, funding, data, laboratory space, and students.
