Durban - Several sharks have been released into the public canal system at the Durban Point Waterfront so they can fatten up.
But visitors have nothing to fear for the time being, as the eight hammerhead sharks are only a few months old and currently weigh less than 3kg each.
The Durban Point Waterfront Company confirmed on Thursday that the juvenile sharks had been released into the canals earlier this month at the request of uShaka Marine World.
Development company spokesperson Vishal Devlall said the plan was to let the sharks grow up in the relatively safe canal environment before moving them back to uShaka, where they would be put on display in the main aquarium.
Seaworld director Tony Mc-Ewan said there were no suitably large tanks available at uShaka.
“At the moment they are still tiny, around 2.5kg. There has been quite a lot of interest from the public and we have put up a sign to explain what the project is about.”
The sharks have been confined to a small section of the canal system near the gondola launching site so they can be fed and monitored on a daily basis. Their diet comprises squid, sardines and prawns.
And they are not alone – there are about 50 other species of fish and sea creatures living in the Point Waterfront Canal.
Seaworld officials said there were several large shoals of spotted grunter and parrotfish, along with karranteen, kingfish, mullet and surgeon fish.
Some of these species had been introduced into the canals to control the growth of algae.
Earlier this year, more than 70 grunters, each weighing about 4kg, were taken out of the canal and released in the sea off uShaka Beach as Seaworld staff were worried there would not be enough food to sustain them.
McEwan said he anticipated the hammerheads would remain in the canal for at least a year to allow them to grow big enough to defend themselves and then be released into the main tanks at Seaworld/uShaka. - The Mercury