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South Africa’s Coastal Communities Unite Against 70 Years of Wildlife Slaughter

Published 8 months agoon September 9, 2025

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa – A rapidly growing coalition of over 50 organisations spanning the entire eastern coastline has launched a public campaign to end the use of shark nets and drumlines along the KZN coastline.

“The KZN culling devices don’t just kill sharks, they remove whales, dolphins, and endangered species from our oceans,” said Kim McLean from SharkLady Adventures in Gansbaai. “We have proven, modern solutions that can protect both swimmers and marine life.”

shark culling

The KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board’s current system, first introduced in the 1950s, is under increasing scrutiny. While it was once seen as innovative, today it is considered outdated and harmful. Many countries have successfully used non-lethal shark mitigation strategies for decades with zero bycatch.

shark culling

In a joint statement, The Last Shark Documentary and Earth Legacy Foundation said:

“Research shows that the vast majority of animals caught in shark nets are non-target species. These nets and drumlines continue to indiscriminately kill marine life, including protected, threatened, endangered, and critically endangered species, while failing to provide a reliable barrier against sharks. We must ask why outdated technologies from the 1950s are still in use when effective, modern, non-lethal alternatives are readily available.”

shark culling

The coalition’s petition, which is addressed to the minister of the DFFE, is open for signatures at:

https://www.change.org/KZNSBNetsOutNow.

Organisations are invited to send an email to thelastsharkdoc@gmail.com in order to join the coalition.

Esther Jacobs

Esther Jacobs is a shark conservationist, originally from Scotland, now living in South Africa working with sharks and other marine life. Esther works with Oceans Research, a marine research facility in Mossel Bay, South Africa. She also runs a shark conservation campaign called Keep Fin Alive, which features a handpuppet shark called Fin, who is on a mission to be photographed with as many people as possible holding a sign that says “I hugged a shark and I liked it… Keep Fin Alive”. He’s already been photographed with lots of celebrities and scientists. The ultimate goal of the campaign is to take a light-hearted approach to help change the common misconception of sharks and drive more attention to the problems of shark overfishing, finning, shark fishing tournaments, bycatch and longlining.