It is often described as the African equivalent of the Gulf Stream. And is one of the world’s most powerful oceanic currents – one that moves almost 70 million tons of water a second!
Its name is the Agulhas Current> And it forms to the south-west of the huge island of Madagascar, when the powerful Mozambique Current merges with the equally strong East Madagascar Current. From that tumultuous beginning, the Agulhas runs straight down the 2000km long east coast of South Africa. At surface speeds of up 8km an hour, bringing with it warm Indian Ocean water rich with nutrients.
Where those waters touch offshore reef systems along the edge of the narrow South African continental shelf, they are the catalyst and life-blood for some incredible ecosystems.
And one of the very richest of those ecosystems is the Protea Banks…
Where those waters touch offshore reef systems, along the edge of the narrow South African continental shelf, they are the catalyst and life-blood for some incredible ecosystems.
And one of the very richest of those ecosystems is the Protea Banks…
The Protea Banks
Located some 8 km offshore from the seaside town of Margate in KwaZulu-Natal province. The Protea Bank is a large submerged shoal, about 800m wide and 6km long. The average depth is around 30m, but some key locations are much deeper. So bottom times, air consumption and decompression limits are hardly abstract issues when diving there.
The shoal rises up from the short but sloping South African continental shelf. Just before it plummets down in to the 3500m deep Natal Valley, creating an almost perfect aggregation point for the rich marine life of the east coast.
The Protea Banks enjoys a reputation as one of the best places in South Africa to dive with sharks. And depending on the time of year you can see up to seven different varieties. Including ragged-tooth sharks, “oceanic” blacktips, bull sharks, tiger sharks and two varieties of hammerheads – scalloped, smooth and great hammerhead sharks.
X-Ray Magazine Article – The Sharks of the Protea Banks
The global diving magazine X-Ray published a 8-page article of mine on diving the Protea Banks. You can access and dowload the article on this link: Sharks of the Protea Banks.
