#Divers swimming with deep blue shark plus

It is however rare, and cage dive operators do not provide the option to dive with these sharks without a cage. Great white sharks have been encountered by scuba divers when diving areas with a known shark population.

South Africa: False Bay, Mossel Bay and GansbaiiĬan you Dive with Great White Sharks without a cage?.

Divers visiting the Neptune Islands can also experience the Leafy Sea dragon, seals and sea lions typical of South Australia diving.Ĭage diving with great white sharks is also available at the following destinations: The best month for shark viewing is April when the weather, water temperature, shark size, and other variables provide an optimal experience for divers. The main season is May to October, during which the average water temperature is 16 degrees Celsius (60 Fahrenheit). Neptune Island has good shark viewing opportunities year-round. The ocean floor dives require dive certification but cage dives are also available at the surface for non-divers. Neptune Island offers the unique opportunity to cage dive with great white sharks from the ocean floor, providing a truly immersive experience in the sharks’ environment. Cage diving is available both at the surface and at depth at Guadalupe. The water temperature during the season is 19 degrees Celsius (66 Fahrenheit) to 22 degrees Celsius (71 Fahrenheit) and the visibility is spectacular ranging from 40 to 52 meters (125 to 150 feet). Guadalupe liveaboard boats offer cage diving trips during the main season of July to December and focus solely on diving with great white sharks. As such, chumming at Guadalupe is kept to a minimum, to protect the environment and the natural behaviour of the sharks. It is a tiny island off the west coast of Mexico and is part of a protected area. Guadalupe is the premier destination for great white shark cage diving in crystal clear, warm, blue water. Both Guadalupe and Neptune Island offer fantastic cage diving opportunities: 1. It is a unique dive experience, suitable for both certified divers and snorkelers. Shark cage diving is a great way to experience first-hand the sheer size and grace of great white sharks as they glide by.

Where is the Best Place to see Great White Sharks?

#Divers swimming with deep blue shark plus

It is this diversity of coloration and scars, plus their different sizes, that allow divers to recognise individual sharks. Some females also have bite scars, obtained from male sharks during mating. They are often heavily scarred with scratches from encounters with seals, or occasionally orca.

When cage diving with great white sharks, two surprising facts about them come to light they have blue eyes and their colour varies from dark to pale grey and shades of bronze. Their global population is now estimated to be between 1500 to 5000 individuals and they are listed as Vulnerable to extinction on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. They are commonly misconceived as aggressive and have been hunted and fished heavily since the 1970s. Whilst they are mostly solitary, they communicate with one another using body language, and it is rare to see a white shark bite another of its kind. They can live for up to 70 years and feed on smaller sharks, fish, and marine mammals at different times of their life and during different times of the year. Growing up to 6 meters in length and weighing up to 2 tonnes when fully grown, they are an imposing fish to encounter and very popular to cage dive with.Ĭage diving allows you to safely get up close to these amazing creatures - photo courtesy of Horizon liveaboard, Guadalupe, Mexico They first appeared around 11 million years ago and can be found around the globe in temperate to subtropical waters. Great white sharks are an apex predator, sitting at the top of the food chain and with only one known predator, the orca.

Where to Cage Dive with Sharks Great White Sharks