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Shark Nets:

"Black December" of 1957 saw 5 attacks occur off the Natal coast within a month, causing tourists to flee the coastal resorts of the province. This crippled the tourist industry of Natal, and created a need to keep sharks away from swimming beaches.

Various anti - shark measures were introduced, but all proved to be ineffective due to the adverse surf conditions off the Natal Coast. After experimentation, shark nets were introduced in 1966. The introduction of shark nets lead to a drastic reduction of encounters with sharks. The principle of the shark nets is to reduce the amount of shark species in an area.

It is estimated that 35% of all sharks meshed are heading seawards. This proves that the nets do not form a barrier between the bathing beaches, ocean users and the sharks. A negative aspect of the nets is that they are not species selective in their fishing - dolphins', turtles and birds all fall victim to the nets. Other techniques, such as drum linbing are being researched in order to replace the nets, but at present, shark nets remain as the primary anti shark measure off the Natal coast.

Pictures of shark barriers erected to keep the bathers safe from the threat of shark attack.

Zambezi shark swimming through a hole in a shark net