The DICT is a member of the South African Strandings Network and serves as one of the primary responders in the Overstrand region. Over the past few months, the team has responded to a number of cetacean strandings. Although strandings are never easy to encounter, they provide valuable scientific information. Since September 2025, the team has attended strandings of baleen whales, [...]
The DEEP Blue community is excited to welcome 13 new DEEP Blue Ambassadors who have officially begun their first year in the programme. These young individuals have stepped forward with passion and dedication to become champions for the ocean, sustainability, and positive environmental change within their communities. The DEEP Blue Ambassadors programme is designed to empower youth by equipping them with [...]
Marine Dynamics – Dyer Island Conservation Trust Team Completes Whale Disentanglement Training The Marine Dynamics – Dyer Island Conservation Trust team has completed an intensive two-day whale disentanglement training course with Mike Meyer from the South African Whale Disentanglement Network (SAWDN). The organisation is immensely proud of the team members who undertook the rigorous training to prepare themselves to assist in [...]
From 16 to 23 February, the Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation’s Turtle Conservation Centre team embarked on their 2026 Turtle Road Trip along the Garden Route and Southern Cape coastlines — connecting with key role players in turtle rescue and raising awareness ahead of the annual turtle hatchling stranding season. Siyolise Bezu, one of the passionate Turtle Rescue Team members. [...]
It’s been a year since the KruShan X-Ray Room opened at the African Penguin and Seabird Sanctuary in Kleinbaai, Gansbaai — a transformative donation from Shannon and Kruger du Plessis of the KruShan Foundation. In just one year, the X-Ray Room has become a hive of activity, providing immediate, on-site diagnostics for African Penguins, seabirds, and even birds of prey. "This [...]
On Sunday, 15 February, a solitary African Penguin was spotted at the Old Harbour in Hermanus. A message was shared on the Overberg Stranding Network group about the penguin sitting quietly at the water’s edge. Ash Appleby from Southern Right Charters immediately went to assess the situation. He reported no visible injuries, but as he approached, the penguin slipped back into [...]
10 February 2026 Schalk’s journey began on 20 November 2025, when an African penguin in distress was rescued in Mossel Bay by an NSRI Station 15 volunteer. Weak and vulnerable, he was rushed to the SAPREC Seabird and Penguin Rehabilitation Centre in Mossel Bay, where it quickly became clear that this young penguin had arrived just in time. Schalk was a [...]
In February 2025, a Rockhopper penguin was found stranded on a beach in Arniston, South Africa, thousands of kilometres from home. Injured and severely underweight, likely as a result of a dog bite, and, was immediately transported to the African Penguin and Seabird Sanctuary (APSS). From the moment he arrived, it was clear that he had already endured a long and [...]
“For 21 years, it’s been incredible to see the same hump cutting through the waves,” says Wilfred Chivell, CEO of Marine Dynamics and Founder of the Dyer Island Conservation Trust. “Each humpback dolphin we encounter is not just a fleeting glimpse of the wild; it is an individual with a story, a life, and a place in our coastal ecosystem — [...]
We are so grateful to Cape Town City Toyota for sponsoring us with a brand-new Hilux for another season of marine animal rescues. Your support helps us respond quickly along the Overstrand Coast — from Pringle Bay to Agulhas — and care for critically endangered African Penguins, and so many seabirds and marine creatures in need. Just this past Friday evening, [...]
