Cape Town holidays – Meet the Sharks!
There are plenty of reasons to visit Cape Town – the vibrant culture, the nightlife, the natural landscape surrounding the city – but for animal lovers and thrill-seekers, one aspect of Cape Town holidays that is very attractive is the presence of sharks! Shark tours in Cape Town attract marine wildlife enthusiasts from all over the world and nearby False Bay is known as one of the greatest spots on the planet to observe great white sharks in the wild. Whether you go on a boat trip, or even delve into the depths and try cage-diving to get up close and personal with the sharks, knowing a little more about these apex predators can really help enhance your experience.
Stealth
One feature of sharks that many divers come to appreciate is their colouring. For people interested in cage diving on their Cape Town holidays, it’s important to be able to spot the sharks coming – but their colouring often inhibits any attempt! It works to their advantage when they’re hunting for food – with a pale white underside and a grey dorsal area, from any angle they’re camouflaged. It breaks up the shark’s outline from the side in dim light, making it hard to recognise. From above, the darker shade blends in with the sea, and from below it exposes a minimal shape against any sunlight closer to the surface.
Senses
While all sharks share the same five senses of most animals, they enjoy an extra sense, afforded to them by tiny electroreceptors called the ‘ampullae of Lorenzini’, which lets them detect the electromagnetic pulses given off by the movement of other animals. It’s a fascinating ability to ponder if you’re diving with sharks on your Cape Town holidays. With every movement, a living creature generates an electrical field, and sharks are so sensitive they can detect half a billionth of a volt. It helps them to locate prey, even creatures that burrow into the sand as a defence mechanism. Some shark repellents make use of the shark’s senses, producing electromagnetic fields that make the sharks retreat from the device.
Seal Island
The first destination for all shark fans on their Cape Town holidays should be the nearby Seal Island, in False Bay. It’s a famous location for shark watching, and early morning visitors will quickly see where the reputation of great white sharks as eating machines comes from! They often attack cape fur seals in the morning, and ambush them from below at high speeds – sometimes travelling so fast that they completely leave the water.
Rachel Hill is a Southern Africa Travel specialist, a company specialising in luxury, tailor-made Cape Town holidays as well as holidays to other destinations in Southern Africa. Our experienced consultants will help you design your very own luxury South Africa holiday, and will be happy to provide you with a free quote.
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