Durban - This year's Sardine Run is proving to be an exceptionally good one for KwaZulu-Natal. Over the past weekend, hundreds of crates of the small silvery fish were netted in Margate and they're still coming.
Most of South Africa's sardines are found along the Cape coast, but every winter a large number make their way to KZN to take advantage of a narrow band of cool water that occurs seasonally between the Wild Coast and the warm, southward-flowing Agulhas current.
“I’ve been in the business for over 40 years, and I can tell you that it’s a truly exceptional and phenomenal year,” said KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board's Mike Anderson-Reade. “We haven’t witnessed this for ages. It’s a spectacle to see with hundreds of sharks following the shoals."
On Tuesday the south coast was a hive of activity as the public flocked to get their share of the bumper "catch".
The Sharks Board has already removed its nets between Scottburgh and Port Edward and says it will remove more as the sardines move up the coast.