Our objectives
To provide long-term data on South African elasmobranchs (sharks, rays and skates)
To encourage open data sharing and communication between organisations with similar interests
To supply free and comprehensive educational material
To celebrate South Africa’s elasmobranch diversity
To promote awareness around important endemic elasmobranchs
To promote respectful interactions with the marine environment
What does elasmobranch mean?
‘Elasmobranch’ is a collective term referring to all species of sharks, rays and skates. It encompasses species like the feared great white shark, the cute puffadder shyshark, the majestic manta ray, the misunderstood stingray, the unknown spearnose skate, and everything in between.
Why South Africa?
The South African coastline is known for its outstanding diversity in marine wildlife. It’s waters are home to 186 elasmobranch species, making it the fifth highest country in the world in terms of number of species!
Why elasmobranchs?
Elasmobranchs play pivotal roles in keeping our oceans healthy, but unfortunately about 30% of these species are at risk of extinction, largely due to over-fishing.
Why you?
That’s why we need your help! We need for information on these species to better manage and conserve them, but monitoring elasmobranch populations can be difficult and costly. There are, however, a number of people who encounter sharks, rays and skates on a regular basis: anglers, divers, snorkellers, skippers, beach visitors, and more. You represent eyes out in the field, with the capacity to collect incredibly important information.
We collect the information from your sightings, store it carefully, and share it with other scientists/organisations/projects that study elasmobranchs and work towards their conservation.
We also provide a number of resources, which can be used privately or for educational purposes. Please feel free to download and use any of our resources under the ‘Resources’ tab.