World Shark Day: Research Drives New Hope for Shark, Ray Protection in SA

Photo Credit: Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation via Facebook

It’s World Shark Day! The Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation is uniting marine experts, scientists, and conservationists from across South Africa to champion these often misunderstood species, in hopes of moving closer to ensuring a balanced and thriving marine ecosystem for all.

Cape Town, South Africa (14 July 2025) – Today marks World Shark Day, and what better way to celebrate this remarkable species than to spearhead a project dedicated to their preservation and protection?!

The Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation is celebrating a research collaboration that marine experts, scientists and conservationists hope will contribute to the conservation of key elasmobranch species (marine animals with cartilaginous skeletons).

“Our Research team is collaborating on this nationwide strategic partnership with Shark Spotters, the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity, Makhanda, Eastern Cape (SAIAB) and its marine infrastructure platform, the ATAP – Tracking fish movements, and South African National Parks – Scientific Services,” Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation’s Heather Wares and Laura du Toit share.

Focusing on the spotted gully shark, common eagle ray, and lesser guitarfish housed at the Aquarium, this project, initiated in 2022, is not only generating invaluable data on their movements, population dynamics, and habitat use within False Bay that can drive meaningful conservation outcomes, but also nurturing the next generation of ocean leaders.

“Together, the partner organisations are utilising acoustic tagging and tracking methods to research the movements, population dynamics, and habitat use of these species, as well as the effectiveness of the bay’s Marine Protected Areas (MPAs),” says Dr Nathalie Viljoen, Head of Research at the Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation.

Within False Bay, Shark Spotters have set up a clever network of underwater microphones, called acoustic receivers. These are placed in just the right spots to hear coastal animals like spotted gully sharks, common eagle rays, and lesser guitarfish as they swim by.

When these animals are tagged, a small device inside them sends out a special, high-pitched sound. The receivers on the seafloor pick up these sounds. They then record the date, time, and a unique ID for each tagged animal that passes.

Teams from SAIAB regularly collect this recorded data. They then share it with their partners, giving everyone valuable information about where these tagged animals are going and what they’re doing.

The actual tagging procedure requires the trained hands of Two Oceans Aquarium veterinarian, Dr Ilse Jenkinson. As tags need to be surgically implanted, this requires the utmost care and expertise.

By bringing together several organisations to work together in this collaborative capacity, this project has created an incredible environment of knowledge sharing and innovation.

“Collectively, we can start to understand fascinating ecological interactions within the ecosystem, identify habitats which could be critical for species survival (e.g., nurseries or feeding grounds), and identify areas of human overlap. With this comes the next task of converting knowledge into tangible conservation planning and protection measures, such as fishing bans or strengthening the enforcement of Marine Protected Areas,” explains Ware and Du Toit.

Excitingly, this has the potential to substantiate the need for further protections for marine spaces and wildlife.

“As World Shark Day reminds us, sharks are commonly misunderstood, while other elasmobranchs, like rays, remain unfamiliar to the public. This kind of research goes a long way towards shifting the public’s mindsets from fear to awe of species critical to the balance of the marine ecosystem.

“The more people know and understand, the more likely they are to add their voices to conservation efforts and become custodians of the species.”