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My Rare Gully Shark Encounter

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Author Jen Fitschen, BSc Computer Science and Oceanography

spotted gully shark
Spotted Gully Shark in Simons Town. Image by Jen Fitschen

On a hunch from a friend, myself and diving buddy Lauren decided to go look for the group of gully sharks to encounter. We had heard they were cruising around one of the local spots. Knowing this, we had to go look for ourselves. I had never seen one before this day!

Getting Ready

We arrived at the spot, eager to jump in. We raced to put on our dive gear and plunged into the ocean. The water felt warmer than usual which is a good sign. We swam around for a while, unsure of their presence. Had they moved off to another spot already?

Then out of nowhere, my eyes caught a glimpse of a shadow moving past below me. That was my first gully shark! I yelled over to Lauren to call her over. I dived down and there they were, a small clearing in the kelp.

The Sighting

There were about 10 of them, cruising around. They had a pattern and were all following the same flow. I hid behind a bit of kelp and watched them as they passed by. The most graceful creatures, with there sleek muscular bodies.

Wrapping Up my Gully Shark Encounter

Spotted Gully sharks in Cape Towns kelp forest. Source Youtube, Upload: james kielczynski.

What a sight to remember. I will never forget this day. Such an incredible sightings. When I was down there with them, time ceased to exist.

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