Can of worms or sardines or tuna?
Can of worms or sardines or tuna? A helluva hornet’s nest was inadvertently prodded by The Sardine News this week!
It started with a notable lack of sardine catches, down Port Elizabeth way, this season. This is alarming not only because historically, sardine catches off Port Elizabeth have always been good, but also since these exact sardines are the ones that make the sardine run up to KZN each year.
Our sards!
Speculation
As is my job, I began to speculate about the situation, and I remembered an alarming situation that occurred deep off our coastline, in May of 2024. On my AIS screen, I saw about 500 grey AIS markers. And when I clicked on them, it popped up ‘Unidentified’. Amongst these 500 were a few ships that did have information attached to them, upon being clicked.
I wrote an article back then, not knowing anything about what the grey markers could be. I speculated that perhaps they were illegal foreign vessels lying in ambush for our sardines to swim by, pounce, and then get back out to a mothership where the fish could be processed straight into cans.
Longliners
After our piece on Facebook, the comments section lit up again. So many people took offence or alarm(again) and told us we know little to nothing. Which is most probably true.
But, working together, we can all learn. Which is what speculation is meant to lead to.
‘The truth is out there’ – Prof Simon.
One particularly knowledgeable chap said outright that the grey AIS beacons were in fact marking the position of long lines deployed to catch tuna with. This is just outside our economic zone and so is, to all intents and purposes, legal.
However…
It’s fine to acknowledge that the activities we noted are legal. But watch this amazing video for some clearer, more global perspectives.
Squid
It would be fine for some then to just brush off the 500 AIS’s as legal fishing and keep buying tinned tuna. And also to acknowledge that sardines have nowhere near the value of tuna. And that it would be too expensive to go all the way back to a foreign land with only sardines in your hold(more information gleaned from speculation).
But, the squid are also missing in those waters this year!
All this is busy painting a picture. I don’t know what the end painting will look like. But I can speculate, now knowing that there are dishonest and unethical factors at play here. There is too much money for there not to be. Could it be rogue vessels like the ones in the movie above? Could it be corrupt governments working together? Or against eachother?
And what are those heavy marine engine sounds that you can hear for weeks (nighttime only) along certain sections of the Transkei Coast ?
Another relevant read…Inside the struggles of South Africa’s fisheries enforcement and science teams by the Daily Maverick.
Sardines and Sighting Maps
Check out our annual Sardine Run Map! Download our app to your phone or device, accept notifications, and you will never miss a single sardine.
Here are the links to existing and past Sardine Sighting Maps…
2024 Sardine Map
2023 Sardine Map
2021 Sardine Map
Channels
Brucifire Surf Retorts – highly entertaining surf reporting
Master Watermen – news from way down deep
The Sardine News – neva miss a single sardine
FishBazaruto – 1000 pounds plus
MYDO Tackle Talk – highly technical sport fishing
Surf Launching Southern Africa – getting out there safely
Water Woes – complain about your municipality
Websites
umzimkulu.co.za – everything about fishing the Umzimkulu Estuary, accommodation and charters
umzimkuluadrenalin.co.za – will get you right out and onto the edge
thesardine.co.za – never miss a single sardine
masterwatermen.co.za – news from under water
fishbazaruto.com – dreams
brucifire.co.za – surf retorts
