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  • Shark cage diving in Gansbaai, South Africa with Marine Dynamics. Experience the exceptional and come face to face with a great white shark! 

  • The exact world record white shark is a contested issue, but chances are it is between 6-7m. In Gansbaai, the largest white shark ever caught was at Danger Point and measured up to 5.9m.

  • If you see a white shark in the water don’t panic. Chances are high that the shark has already detected you and isn’t interested. White shark attacks are normally associated with poor visibility, so avoid murky conditions.

  • White sharks have a unique system called a “counter current heat exchange”, which keeps their body  tempreture +/- 7C above the surrounding water temperature. 

  • All sharks have an incredibly unique system on the tip of their nose called the “ampillae of Lorenzini”. These are small pores filled with a gel that transmits the electrical currents in the water to the shark’s brain so that it can assess its environment.

  • White sharks give birth to live young (not eggs), and they give birth to 6-8 pups at one time. Pups are usually between 1.0-1.5m in length and are born with teeth.

  • Body language has been a well documented form of shark communication and has identified body arching, jaw gaping, and other postures as specific social tactics.

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The Crew

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Michelle Jewell

Alumni Biologist

To Michelle Jewell, a born and bred American from Michigan, the sea resembles another planet within Earth full of thriving systems and unknown life. "So many of us gaze at the stars in wonder when we should be looking into our oceans!"

Michelle has always had a quest for knowledge and a special interest in animal behaviour - especially predator and prey systems. She grew up in Davison, a suburb of Flint in the State of Michigan in the United States, where she obtained a BSc degree in Zoology with honours from the Michigan State University. An enthusiastic outdoor-adventurist, she partook in various educational, research and conservation projects that took her from the Antarctica to the jungles of Costa Rica before she fell in love with the prolific marine wildlife in Gansbaai. "The ocean has always fascinated me and the fact that we know more about the surface of the moon than the depths of our oceans is astonishing. I hope that my work here will inspire others to also look at the ocean in wonder and further protect the animal that is the sea."

Michelle Jewell specialised in animal behaviour during her undergraduate Zoology degree. Her MSc focused on the behavioural ecology between the Great white sharks and Cape fur seals. She was supervised by Prof. Justin O'Riain and Dr. Alta de Vos of the University of Cape Town and supported by the Dyer Island Conservation Trust.

Michelle Jewell is currently a Lecturer and Chief Science Communicator at NC State University, and a Research Associate at Michigan State University Museums.

Catch Michelle Jewell on Shark Week 2022!
https://bit.ly/SharkWeek2022

 

Saving the Ocean

At Marine Dynamics we live by our motto of Discover & Protect and believe that collaboration is the key to conservation success.

Join us in saving the marine life that we all hold so dear to our hearts and remember that Your Choice Does Make A Difference!

The Crew

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