Great white shark monitoring in South Africa
Great white shark monitoring in South Africa
Duration: from 2 Weeks to 4 Weeks
Countries: South Africa
Now this really is an experience you won`t be able to forget! Getting up close to great white sharks and recognising who is who! You will really make your friends jealous.Call: 0845 344 7592
Located in the Western Cape of South Africa approximately 180kms from Cape Town you will really be finding your sea legs as you work on this project. The project was set up originally to monitor the behaviour of the whale sharks so that marine biologists could understand why this species is so much in decline, with this interpretation of behaviour it will then hopefully be possible to slow this decline down. As a volunteer you will be helping the marine biologists collect the necessary data for their research work to continue, you will also be gaining a very valuable insight into the sharks behaviour as well as learning lots more about what goes on below the surface of the water! You will be working on one of two boats, one of which will be with the tourists on the tourist boat as they get ready to spot the marine big 5 – whales, sharks, dolphins, penguins and seals and also help prepare them for their cage diving. The other boat you will be spotting sharks and recognising them by their distinguishing marks and collecting data about their behaviour. The boats can go out up to 4 times a day so you will be on a rota basis but you will certainly get plenty of experience out on the water. Not only will you be learning more about the sharks but you will also learn about the eco systems of the area and how these are sustained, about climatic conditions, photography, boat safety, ocean conservation so there will be plenty of activities and tasks to get involved in. As the project is weather dependant for days that you will be unable to go out to sea there will be office based tasks and activities for you to get involved in. You won`t be living far from the project either and will be in a residential accommodation based on twin share rooms, just a 5 minute stroll along the coast with some stunning scenery along the way, what a way to start the day!
Sharon Rhys Davies says of the project ‘I'm not scared of great white sharks now - they're amazing!’
Inclusions
accommodation, airport pickup
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i-to-i
At i-to-i Volunteering we pride ourselves in a high level of service to ensure that all our gap year travellers get the most out of their travel. With Teaching, Community Development, Conservation, Sports placements in 21 countries, we can offer you the worthwhile gap year (or shorter gap stint) that you want.
