Humpback whale migration – the what, when, where, and why??

Humpback whales Plett orca

Over the past few months we have had some really fantastic sightings of humpback whales Megaptera novaeangliae on our boat trips! You may wonder if the whales are still around, and yes, they are! We have been getting our best sightings of the whales off the point of Robberg as they are seldom inside the bay. […]

Fish Tagging

Fishtagging ORCA

The perilous state of many fish stocks worldwide is well known, as well as the data deficient status of many fish species, and the people who are have noticed a change over time, excluding the commercial fishing vessels, are the recreational and subsistence fishermen. It was recognized by Rudy van der Elst that such fishermen […]

August research Blog!!

August Our 7th species collected a Munchkin Skate e1472889523618

August research blog We have exciting news on the elasmobranch egg case project! After 7 months of surveying beaches we have finally collected a different egg case! Generally, we will collect egg cases from 6 different species: Dark Shyshark, Leopard Catshark, Puffadder Shyshark, Pyjama Shyshark, St Josephs Shark, and the Twineyed Skate. Finally, we can […]

July Research blog….

July Remember to report your Great White Shark sightings1

July research blog As per usual the first project to report on is the elasmobranch egg case project. It is now 6 months into the project and to date we have collected 2495 egg cases of 6 species! So far we have yet to see any clear patterns emerging with regards to seasonal differences in […]

Blacktail – abundant, ubiquitous, and hermaphroditic!

37 black tail

Blacktail – abundant, ubiquitous, and hermaphroditic! Anglers and visitors to the underwater world in our beautiful Plettenberg Bay may be familiar with a fish called blacktail Diplodus capensis, though perhaps the name dassie or Cape white seabream is more familiar. This is an oval-shaped fish which is primarily silver in colour with a black patch […]

Mussel-ing in on our coastline!

36 mussles banner

Mussel-ing in on our coastline! Mussel is the common term for a variety of fresh and salt water clams or bivalve molluscs. Bivalves, as the name may suggest, are enclosed by two shell halves, and mussels are no different. Most of the species to which the term mussel applies have shells where the length is […]

Not one, but three, abalone species in Plettenberg Bay!

27 abalone banner 960x353

Not one, but three, abalone species in Plettenberg Bay! If someone mentions abalone, it brings to mind one specific marine gastropod mollusk (sea snail) species Haliotis midae, also known as perlemoen. In fact, in Plettenberg Bay, there are 3 abalone species living in intertidal and subtidal waters. The most well-known abalone species is perlemoen, while […]

One of 24 – Plettenberg Bay’s Marine Protected Area

ORCA Foundation SouthAfrica plett

Water covers 71% of the Earth’s surface, yet despite the majority holdings, only roughly 4% of this area is under formal protection. Land makes up 29% of the Earth’s surface and of this area 15% is under formal protection. We are at a crucial time in man’s history, where much of our natural areas have […]

Humpback Whales – we’re happy they’re back in Plett!

ORCA foundation South africa

Come June, eyes are kept peeled for that elusive blow as boat trips start taking a turn off the point and further to sea searching, and hoping, for the first sighting of a Humpback Whale Megaptera novaeangliae. Humpback Whales are large animals, measuring 13-14 m in length and weighing 30-40 tonnes. They have a big […]