If you are like many people, when you hear the word “sardines” your mind might automatically turn to the tinned fish, often preserved in oil or swimming in tomato sauce. While some people take great gustatory pleasure in consuming these little fish, and while others can barely stand the thought of gulping a whole fish, bones and all, these incredible little members of the herring family are worth much more alive than they ever will be in a tin – no matter how fancy. Time to meet the sardine!
Diving With Sardines
Named in honor of the island of Sardinia in the Mediterranean Sea where they were once found in abundance, Sardines are sometimes referred to as pilchards. Members of the Clupeidae family, the term “sardine” usually refers to Clupeidae less than six inches long, while the term “pilchard” usually refers to those who have grown to be much larger. These terms are usually used by the fishing industry, and for the purpose of this article, we’ll call all of them sardines.
Sardines inhabit many ocean environments across the planet, providing a vital source of nutrients to larger fish. While it is possible to encounter them in small groups, dives that focus on sardines are mainly undertaken in the hopes of encountering massive aggregations known as sardine runs; for with the sardines come larger fish, birds, and marine mammals with the intent upon feasting. If you have the good fortune of diving with these little silver fish even once in your life, the experience will be simply unforgettable.
The best place to see the sardine run firsthand is off the coast of South Africa, between the months of May and July, when billions of the fish come into the cool waters of the Agulhas Bank to spawn. After spawning in a writhing frenzy, they continue northward along the eastern coastline, heading toward the Indian Ocean. While the individual fish are small, their biomass is incredible; scientists have compared the weight of the fish to the weight of all the wildebeests in East Africa.
The shoals of these tiny fish are so large that they can be seen from satellites in space, sometimes stretching for longer than seven kilometers and reaching a width of more than one and one half kilometers. The fish jam themselves into the water column, all the way from the surface to a depth of about thirty meters.
When you go to KwaZulu-Natal to witness this amazing event, you will find yourself surrounded not only by sardines, but by marine predators of every stripe, including larger pelagic fish such as bluefish and king mackerel, dolphins that herd the sardines into bait balls, and several shark species including Zambezi sharks and Bronze Whalers. Cape Fur Seals can be seen as well, once the sardines start to make their way up the coastline, and on occasion, Bryde’s whales and African Penguins join the fray. As you might imagine, a fascinating encounter with these unassuming little fish is something many divers want to experience; expect to share your dive with lots of other people from around the world, and whatever you do, don’t forget your camera!