Day 50.

Since 21st August 46 sharks have been caught on longlines in a 10km stretch of water (from Coconut Bay to Paindane). This includes illegal catches such as the Great White brought up at coconut on the 29th August and numerous endangered species.

                      Juvenile zebra shark

      Large bull shark

Local fisherman finning a silky shark

Day 47.

After a morning dive with Guinjata Dive Centre at Manta Reef (one of the top 10 dive sites in the world) I was so happy. I had seen a black tip reef shark and it was the first live shark I had seen in a long while. Feeling content we began the 20 minute boat ride home. As we started to drive past coconut bay we noticed a lot of commotion on the beach. We drew closer and my heart fell. Sharks. We beached the boat and walked up the beach. There were 11 dead sharks, caught by long lines that morning. The boat had only just landed (10:40am). We had none of our equipment with us only cameras so we took photos and videos of all the species and notes down sex and estimated size. 

      Black tip reef shark aprox 2.8m 

         Photo credit: Monica Phung

        Zoë sexing a juvenile Tiger Shark

         Photo credit: Monica Phung

         Two Scalloped Hammerheads

           Photo credit: Monica Phung

Three sharks were also caught at Paindane at 11:00am. Altogether 14 sharks were caught on 15km stretch of beach in one day. 

Day 46. Tiger Shark on Paindane

Chess and I had a quiet start to our day on Paindane with only one small goat fish being brought up on a kayak. We got a phone call that morning saying that a local dive boat had spotted sharks being brought up on a longline just off Paindane so we stayed and waited for a few hours.
At 12:05 we saw the boat coming in. There was something massive being towed by it. All I could see was a large grey fin cutting through the breakers. It was a Tiger Shark, it was huge (nearly 3.5m long) and it was still very much alive. As the breakers crashed onto the beach the men who had untied the massive creature from the boat dodged the jaws. More sharks were onboard. Altogether there was a Tiger Shark, a Hammerhead, a Guitar Fish and a large reef shark.
All four were again dragged through the swallows to the dunes where the dissecting had taken place only a few days before. The Tiger Shark was too heavy to be pulled up the beach by 10 men and finally its tow rope snapped. It was still alive as the fishermen started to cut it's underside open. It's huge liver spilled out onto the sand. The liver was about 2m long. Sharks use their oil filled liver for buoyancy, unlike fish, who have gas filled bladders. In some sharks the liver can account for 25% of its body weight. With the liver removed and taken away for consumption the shark was light enough to be dragged up the sand dune to the valley. It's huge body still moved and the shark trashed for about 20 minutes even as it was being cut up. Narrowly missing a fishermen's leg the creatures huge jaws open and snapped closed. Finally, a machete was driven through its spinal cord and the movement stopped.

Fishermen drag live Tiger Shark out of breakers
Photo credit: Francesca Trotman

Live Tiger shark
Photo credit: Francesca Trotman

Live Tiger Shark
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Men pull live Tiger Shark from shallows
Photo credit: Francesca Trotman

Reef Shark
Photo credit: Francesca Trotman

Guitar Fish
Photo credit: Francesca Trotman

Juvenile hammerhead
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch 

Fishermen pull reef shark up dune
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Day 44. Illegal turtle catch

It was a bright and breezy morning and the sun was at our backs as Chloe and I began our walk to Paindane (approximately 5km from our home at Guinjata Bay). About 20 minutes into the walk we saw a large object being pulled through the breakers a few hundred metre away. We quickened our pace and soon met two men, Chloe recognised one as a fishermen. We asked him what was in the net he gave us a word in Betongo the local dialect. He looked nervous as we followed him and his friend and he began to explain that what they had caught was very illegal but they couldn't help what swam into their net. 

As we drew nearer to the net we finally understood. We could see a huge turtle tangled up inside. It was only when we reach the creature that we realised it was still alive. In a dazed state of adrenaline we helped the fishermen pull the net up out of the breakers. We expected them to cut this creature out as soon as it was safe to do so. A small group of men, women and children quickly assembled to try and detangle the net before any other observers could see. We began to tell the fishermen from early that he must cut the live turtle free quickly before it died. He was nervously reluctant and mumbled something about untangling the net first. As the net was unraveled we saw its other victims, two more turtles, one alive, and a dead devil ray. The live turtles we gasping and contouring their necks and fins against the harsh strain of the net. Trying to pull the wire from the throat of the nearest gasping turtle we looked into it's terrified eyes. The compassion you feel for such a majestic creature in such a horrific scenario is something I cannot yet put into words. 

We were still both under the impression that the live turtles would be released.  I could not tell you how long we were stood there trying to shield the eyes of this dying animal from the harsh sandy wind that blew over us. After sometime the first live turtle was dragged out but we were preoccupied with the other victim and did not see as they dragged the free created away over the sand and up the dune. When we saw what was happening Chloe asked why was it not being put back into the sea? We were mocked and taunted by the children present who thought it was amusing. The man from earlier gave us a sheepish look and told us that they had to show their catch to the authorities first but you could see even he couldn't make this lie convincing. 

This was the saddest thing I have ever witnessed. 

Men rush to untangle their illegal catch.
Photo credit: Chloe Bentley 

First live turtle with net tangled around it's belly and throat.
Photo credit: Chloe Bentley

Fishermen wary of our presence as they struggle to untangle the net.
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch   

Chloe uses our clipboard to try and shelter the dying animals eyes from
sandy wind.
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Second live turtle with 1m ruler for reference.
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch 

Dead turtle with metre ruler for reference.
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Day 43. Paindane Shark Attack

Paindane Bay is about 5km walk from Guinjata and a popular tourist destination. As Chess and I arrived there this morning and set up our towels, ready for a day of monitoring the fishes caught on the beach, we did not anticipate what we were about to see. Usually this beach is fairly quiet with a few small vessels and kayaks going out and bringing in small fish and the occasional octopus.
At 9:40am a small motorboat beached with about 8 fishermen onboard. People began running over and as one man ran past he turned and shouted to us, "Shark!"
We grabbed our bags and ran. By the time we reached the boat there was a large crowd of tourists, divers and locals observing. We peered through and saw shark after shark being pulled out of the small vessel. Altogether there were: 3 Scalloped hammerheads, 2 Guitar Fish (a very rare species), 1 Sandbar shark. They were all dead and they had all been caught on a longline. All these species are illegal to catch. The crowd began to melt away, back to their normal lives and sun tanning but we followed the fishermen with their sharks. The sharks were dragged through the shallows for about 400m until we came to a break in the sand dune.
The six sharks were dragged up the beach to this valley. It was here that we began to measure and record our data. We measure total length-from nose to tip of tail; fork length- nose to fork of tail; pre caudal length- nose to base of tail and width, we also collected vertebrae to age these creatures.

The six sharks being towed to the dunes.
Photo credit: Francesca Trotman

Sandbar shark (Carcharhinus plumbeus) female 164cm
Photo credit: Francesca Trotman

Scalloped hammerhead (Sphyma lewini) 262cm. Stomach projected
through mouth during times of high stress.
Photo credit: Francesca Trotman

Scalloped hammerhead (Sphyma lewini) 257cm. With two huge bites taken
out of the upper body and underside, presumably by another shark.
Photo credit: Francesca Trotman

Guitar fish (Rhinobatidea- family) 264cm.
Photo credit: Francesca Trotman

Head of guitar fish
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Pregnant guitar fish
Photo credit: Francesca Trotman

Embryo sac of guitar fish
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Embryo sac of guitar fish
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Measuring the hammer heads.
Photo credit: Francesca Trotman

Sharks being finned with machetes
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Finned sharks.
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Fins and meat being carried to the near by village.
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Observing.
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Old man carries crate of meat to near by village.
Photo credit: Philippa Fitch

Day 40.

A gloomy cloudy morning at Guinjata. At around 7:30 two fishermen swam out to the gill net. The wind has picked up in the last few days and the breakwater is very choppy. After about 30minutes we see the two men wading out of the breakers with the gill net wrapped around two large objects. Six other men run over to help haul the net up the beach another takes a "cuda" (queen mackerel over 1m long) from the swimmer. As we draw closer we see the wing tips of a ray. "Another two devil rays!" one of the more friendly fishermen tells me. He is enthusiastic, it has been a good week for them, I force a smile of agreement as they untangle to two beautiful rays. We must keep our composure and remember that these men are doing their job even if what they bring up in their nets is sometimes very endangered. Losing our temper will actually be unproductive and cause hostility. The net is 60m long so it takes some time for the men to untangle. The first ray comes out and is hurled to one side for us to measure and weigh. It is about 80cm from nose to base of tail with 116m wing span and weighing 20kg. It is also pregnant.

We move onto the next ray and immediately see that it too is pregnant. Rays can have very long gestation periods, from a few months to more than 2 years. Often the baby is fully developed in the womb but still unborn so that it can be born quickly and healthily if the mother is under stress. The fact that these two babies had not been born in the net suggests that they were not mature enough. 

Day 39

7:30am Another four devil rays brought up in the till net off Guinjata Bay all were pregnant females over 1m wing span and weighing around 22kg.

We are currently researching whether they move in group when pregnant and if the current, in the area that the net is placed, provides something for these pregnant rays.

The afternoon was spent diving in the Inhambane estuary. There were many juvenile fish such as frog fish, pipe fish and many seahorses!

 

Day 38

Four devil rays brought up in the gill net at Guinjata around 7:45am.

All were female and two were pregnant. 

Washed up whale

At about 14:30 we got a call saying that something had washed up at Coconut Bay. We drove the old red landrover along the 7km stretch of beach. From afar the object looked like a small whale but as we drove nearer we could see that it was just bones. Closer inspection showed that it was the tail and a few ribs of a much larger whale. As the sperm whale from last week was carried off by the high spring tide only a few days before we assumed it was part of this. Before being carried away by the tide the sperm whale's stomach exploded due to a build up of gas inside the rotting body. Luckily we live far enough away that we didn't whiteness that or smell the aftermath.

Piling into the landrover to explore the beach whale

Object from afar looked like a small whale.

Tail, vertebrae and a few rib bones most probably from the
 sperm whale beach a week before. (7m)

off roading selfie

Day 37 Toxic waste?

A container was sighted 800m east of Coconut Bay this morning (just inside Guinjata Bay). Labels on the barrel indicate that it contains hazardous substances. Local spear fishermen swam out to it this morning but had to turn back after their eyes began to sting. Everyone is on watch and it must be reported to the authorities as soon as it is located again!

Still had a lovely dive at Manta Reef this morning but we all kept an eye out. Hopefully it is found and recovered safely and before any serious damage can take place.

Day 36. Spring tide

This week at Guinjata Bay it is spring tide (highest high tides and lowest low tides) exposing a rocky outcrop just off the pinnacle of the bay. These rocks are usually submerged and unreachable due to the strong waves that break on them. However, during this stage of the tidal cycle one can walk to the outcrop. Many villages come down to the beach to collect mussels and small copepods (which i am told are eaten like shrimp.) The mussels collected here are very small and not fully developed. Women and children are seen picking the shells off the hard rock face under the sweltering sun as the huge breaker draw ever closer. There are only a few days a month when the best mussels can be harvested so they have to work fast.

The fishermen are not putting the gill net out at this time as the tides are too strong and the net is broken. When asked how the net got so cut open i was told that something big must have swam into it and torn it, maybe a whale shark! Although I am sceptical that a whale shark would a) swim into the net and b) be able to get out of it easily, but it makes a good story and every fishermen likes a good story.

Net (10m x 40m) laid out on the beach whilst it is re-knotted by hand, this process takes a few days.

Day 31 Humpbacks on the dive.

The water was murky, the surge was bad and 40 minutes into our dive on Manta Reef (one of the top 10 dive sites in the world) I was happy to begin our ascent. During our deco stop, at around 15m, three curious giants visited us. Check out my footage, words cannot explain.

Day 30. Sperm Whale

While we were in South Africa a dead sperm whale washed up in Guinjata Bay. Its appearance was a mystery. It is a small juvenile that seems to have been dead for some time. Never before has a sperm whale washed up in Mozambique’s waters. The nearest migration root for these large mammals is towards Antarctica and how it washed up past South Africa and the sharks and other large predators that inhabit the waters there is puzzling. But it is here, and stinking. Oscar, Zoë and I decide to walk there and investigate. The carcass comes into view before the stench hits us. As we draw closer it is unbearable. With the wind blowing southwards we get the full blast of the rotting carcass stretched out the size of a small trunk in front of us. I am prepared for the smell that the others in our house have warned us of and fill my nostrils with Tiger Balm (a thing I would recommend everyone should carry with them as it serves a range of wonderful purposes, although I never thought this would be one of them.) I wrap a bandana around my face and approach the creature. Little is known about the behavior of these animals as they spend most of their lives at depth. They feed at depths of 2,250m (7,380 ft). They are the largest toothed predator on earth and I am determined to get a tooth. These animals usually sink and become whale fall so a tooth would be a prized possession, something wonderfully precious and interesting. I reach my hands into the mouth, batting away flies that are busy laying maggots in the decaying flesh. Three smaller teeth are loose and pull away with little effort the larger ones will take more time. The carcass will take weeks to decompose and it will be interesting to see this happen but from a comfortable distance from now on.

South African Adventures

Arriving

Zoë, Chloe and I arrive at our hostel in White River, South Africa, at about 3pm after driving for 12 hours. Imminently, the owner, Jaco, greeted us. He’s a tall jolly looking Afrikaans man with sparkling friendly eyes and a peaceful playful voice. His wife, daughters and grandson are all as welcoming as him. He entertains us for the night with stories of his travels and the people he has met. We go to bed that night full to the brim with good wine and even better food!

Panorama tour and night safari

In the morning we wake up early and head off on our Panorama tour.

Three Sisters
Photo credit: Zoë Holbrook 

That night we drive to Nkambeni safari camp in Kruger National Park (which is 1.948528 million hectares, approximately the size of Wales). We are told that we will be living in tents but their idea of tents was a little different than ours. Two large canvas cabins on wooden stilts (3mx8m) with bathrooms. Luxury! At 4:30pm we head out on out night safari. We drove through the bush in the open top jeep as the sun began to dip toward the plain. Just outside the camp we spot an old buffalo, he is an outcast from the herd, banished by younger stronger males. He looked grumpy and sad and was not at all phased by out presence.

Finally we reached the highest point in the area, a flat rock that overlooking the bush land with mountains stretching out in the distance. The sunsets seem more orange here, undisturbed by pollution. We sat and watched as the sphere of light disappeared and the dark coolness of night came over us.

Sunset at Kruger National Park, SA
Photo credit: Chloe Bentley 

Wrapping up warm we got back into the jeep and set off down the winding dirt roads. Impala and dakar froze in the light of the torches before bounding off into the dark bush. Suddenly Zoë shouted stop. She had seen something, and then I saw it too. A leopard, lean and sleek, her spotted coat so shiny that it looked like velvet. It sat by a tree only 3m away. She observed us for sometime in a quiet and calm manner, more bemused than interested. Then she turned away and continued to clean herself before slinking back into the dark overgrowth. 

Leopard on night safari at Kruger National Park
Photo credit: Chloe Bentley

On returning to the camp we curl up in out beautiful cabins and sleep happily having already seen two of the big five. (The big five are the most dangerous animals to hunt in Africa. They are the buffalo, leopard, lion, rhino and elephant.

Safari

At 5am, the following morning, we rolled out of bed and put on our warmest clothes. It is much cooler here than it is in Moz and we were not prepared. After a hearty breakfast we set off on our safari with Irma our guide. Irma is a small Afrikaans woman with a gentle voice. She has an engaging aura about her that humbly captures your attention. Her knowledge and compassion quickly become apparent and it is not long before she is showing and telling us about animals that I have only ever seen behind bars.

A baby rhino only a few days old
Photo credit: Chloe Bentley

Photo credit: Chloe Bentley

Photo credit: Chloe Bentley

Photo credit: Chloe Bentley

Getting home

I dread to think how my mum is going to react after reading what I am about you tell you. I hope that her relief will overpower her worry or anger!

Irma agreed to pick us up from our hostel in White River and take us two hours to the border Komatipoort. After an interesting detour we arrived said our goodbyes and made her promise to come visit us in Inhambane.

Our alternative route to avoid traffic

We lugged our rucksacks through the hive of activity. Women with large boxes balanced on their heads strode past us as though the laws of physics did not apply to them. Cars hooted and people greeted one another. We had no onward lift planned. We met Evans a kindly shopkeeper and a friend of a friend, it had been arranged with him beforehand that he would help us get a lift all the way to Inhambane (520km away). He showed us to the visa desk and we started the painfully slow process of renewing our visas to re-entre Mozambique. The stern faced young man behind the desk seems to be having difficulty with the finger print reader. Apparently it did not like my fingerprints so with a angry sigh he scanned his own in my place. While all this was going on Evans flits from truck to car to bus. It seemed that getting a lift might not have been as easy as he had perceived. After three hours we started to realise that being three white females hitchhiking from South Africa to Mozambique might very well be the most stupid thing we have ever done in our lives. We asked people coming through where they were going, some did not understand, some were only going part of the way and could only give us lifts to obscure places. Then we saw a young couple pull in, in what looked like a hire car. Bracing ourselves for another disappointing answer Zoë approached them. The familiar question fell from Zoë mouth and we were ready for a familiar answer when all of a sudden we heard: “Yes, we’re going to Inhambane today.” “Can we get a lift with you, it’s just us three?” A pause as the young man looks at the lady to gauge her thoughts on the matter. “of course” she said, with a smile. Elated we put our bags into the car and climbed into the back. Ed and Emma were newly weds on their honeymoon they had spent two weeks in Madagascar and had decided to take another two touring South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.  Soon we learnt that they had nowhere planned to stay in Inhmabane yet but would like to dive. How convenient we happen to live at a dive resort.

So dearest mother please don’t send me a worried e-mail because I seem to be one of the three luckiest girls in the world.