For two decades, Shark Spotters, a pioneering shark safety and research organisation, has been a working to protect humans and sharks.
The programme was started in 2004 by big-wave surfer Greg Bertish and Dave and Fiona Chudleigh, in response to a spate of shark attacks and sightings in False Bay.
“The day we started Shark Spotters, we employed two unemployed people. One was a car guard, Patrick David, and one was an out-of-work lifeguard Monwabisi Sikweyiya. They were the first spotters in Cape Town,” Mr Bertish said.
Today Mr Sikweyiya is a field manager at Shark Spotters, overseeing on-the-ground operations and training new spotters.
“I still regard myself as a spotter. I really enjoyed sitting up in the mountain and just being on the lookout. With the time on your own, you can actually explore and watch the ocean, and you’ll learn and see a lot,“ he said.
For Mr Bertish, who chairs the organisation’s non-executive committee, the 20-year milestone is testament to perseverance and community support.
“When we started this, literally, people laughed at us. We were a bunch of surfers with a great idea and wanted to implement it. We flew a war siren down from Johannesburg and bolted a flagpole to the toilet block, “ he said.
“This is a great South African story. It’s a great conservation story. It’s also a great community story because essentially, going right back, it was the community who started it.”
Sarah Waries has been at the helm of Shark Spotters for more than 16 years, starting as project manager and now serving as CEO.
She said the initial focus on beach safety – with spotters stationed on mountain vantage points – evolved into a comprehensive strategy to manage interactions between humans and sharks.
“This includes ensuring beach safety, conducting applied research on sharks to understand their behaviour and potential risks in False Bay, and promoting shark conservation as vital apex predators in the ecosystem,” she said
From its humble beginnings, Shark Spotters, which is funded by the City of Cape Town and Save our Seas Foundation, has expanded its operations, now employing nearly 100 staff and reaching over 7000 people annually through educational initiatives.
It is the only shark-safety programme at eight beaches across Cape Town, and in response to fatal shark incidents in Plettenberg Bay in mid-2022, the programme expanded there in November of that year.
“From the beginning, our programme has been marked by innovation. In 2013, for example, we introduced the Fish Hoek shark-exclusion barrier, which is deployed daily during the summer season, to mitigate shark encounters,” Ms Waries said. “We’re also exploring the use of artificial intelligence to enhance spotting abilities, collaborating with scientists worldwide.”
In 2015, the New South Wales government in Australia did a review of bather protection technologies, and Shark Spotters emerged as the top shark-mitigation measure available on the market and was considered ideal for immediate use at Australian beaches.
But what truly sets it apart, according to Ms Waries, is the way the programme manages people and their interactions with the environment.
“We emphasise education, aiming to change perceptions about sharks and promote coexistence rather than eradication. Our efforts include ongoing spotting activities and long-term monitoring, crucial for adaptive management and early detection of potential risks,” she said, urging the public to continuing supporting the programme.
“Any contribution is crucial for our programme’s sustainability.“
