Great white is among the notorious predators on the ocean, and seals are only among its targets. However, seals prove to be a formidable prey when they work together.
Great White Shark Vs. Mob of Seal
An intense moment between a huge great white and a mob of Cape fur seals was caught on camera, and the encounter was documented for BBC's "Planet Earth" trilogy, narrated by David Attenborough.
Great white sharks typically hunt alone, but over time, this location has encouraged them to congregate in groups of a dozen.
The sequence was filmed on the Robberg Peninsula, located in the Indian Ocean off the coast of South Africa. The video depicts a bunch of baby seals diving into the water for fish. But because great white sharks are starting to gather near the spot, every dive is risky for these weak creatures.
The adult seals turn toward the sharks as they start to circle and band together, inspiring further seals to join them in a mass mob that eventually chases the sharks away.
According to Justin Blake, a marine biologist from South Africa who joined the Planet Earth III crew for this scene, before they started filming for the documentary, he found diving with the great whites daunting and scary despite his years of training and experience. Before the first shot, he reportedly had to spend at least a month gaining the necessary mental toughness and guts. Blake's responsibility was to follow the camera operator and watch for boats, sharks, and hazardous waves.
Following the documentary, Blake said he no longer finds great white terrifying. Instead, he was amazed by them, and he is now making a conscious effort to understand and protect them. He found the great white sensitive and well-adapted to their home and not the man-eaters many thought they were.
"They deserve our respect and, critically, our understanding," he said.
Great White's Disappearance in South Africa Explained
After two orcas went on a killing spree, white sharks were not seen in South Africa. According to reports, the great whites moved to a different location to avoid the killer whales.
Great white sharks with missing livers have been turning up dead on the beaches of Gansbaai and False Bay in South Africa for years. According to reports, orcas attacked the great white sharks and specifically targeted their liver.
After that, the sharks stopped coming ashore and swimming near those shores, one of their most well-known habitats in South Africa. The magnificent whites are missing.
A recent study found that the sharks didn't simply vanish; instead, they concealed in a new area to avoid capture. Shark populations in South Africa had relocated east to places like Algoa Bay and the KwaZulu-Natal coast.
The top possibilities that the study's researchers looked at through an elimination process included decreased prey in the region where the sharks disappeared and high reproduction in areas where there were lots of recent reports of shark sightings. They concluded that the great whites left to avoid orca attacks.
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