Sodwana Bay is a bay in South Africa on the KwaZulu Natal north coast, between St. Lucia and Lake Sibhayi. It is in the Sodwana Bay National Park, and the Maputaland Marine Reserve, and is a popular recreational diving destination. The term is commonly used to refer to both the marine reserve and the terrestrial park, as well as the geographical bay.
Sodwana Bay National Park is a narrow strip of forested sand dunes located along the east coast. Proclaimed a national park in the 1950s, it is frequented by anglers and divers.[1] Sodwana is situated in the Maputaland Marine Protected Area and is the only recreational scuba diving area along the Greater St Lucia Wetlands Park (now renamed to iSimangaliso[citation needed]) coastline. Classified as one of the top dive sites in the world,[2] the park is visited by some 35 000 scuba divers per year. The bay is near the southern end of the tropical western Indo-Pacific marine ecoregion, and reef-building corals are present. The 50 km (31 mi) reef complex is the habitat of a wide diversity of resident and migratory species. Several submarine canyons cut into the edge of the continental shelf, which is very close to the shoreline. It was in one of these that on 27 November 2000 that a resident population of coelacanths was discovered.
Sailfish, king mackerel, kingfish and other pelagic species of game fish migrate south down the east coast of Africa and since the activities of sea pirates off the coast of north east Africa healthy populations of pelagic game fish again reach all the way south off the coast of South Africa which has re-established Sodwana as a sport fishing destination for pelagic species.[citation needed] The marine protected area is known for endangered marine megafauna including whale sharks, great white sharks, zambezi sharks, hammerhead sharks, blacktip sharks, manta rays, orange-spotted groupers, potato cod, critically endangered leatherback turtles,[3] loggerhead sea turtles, and coelacanths.[4] The discovery of Coelacanths made the region world-famous. In the March 2011 issue of National Geographic, a short article titled Ancient Swimmers appeared, discussing the discovery of coelacanths in the depths of Sodwana Bay and the surrounding area. A small section of the written article explains that:
"Since this chance sighting, Latimeria chalumnae have been found in several pockets in and around the Indian Ocean. No one knows how many there are - maybe as few as 1,000 or as many as 10, 000. Because of the depth of their habitat, they have mainly been photographed by submersibles and remotely operated vehicles. Divers first documented the fish [in Sodwana Bay] in 2000; in January and February 2010, a specially trained team dived to take pictures of [another] small colony in Sodwana Bay, South Africa."
Whale watching targeting migratory or resident cetaceans is a local tourist industry.[5] Bottlenose dolphins live in the vicinity and have been observed to swim with whale sharks. Humpback whales migrate through the bay during winter to spring seasons while southern right whales and other species are less common. Orcas may also visit the bay waters.[citation needed]
The land areas of the iSimangaliso Wetland Park are home to species of large land animals such as lions, giraffes, elephants, hippos and rhinos[6]
^Cite error: The named reference Nature reserve was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"Top dive sites in the World | PADI". PADI Travel. Retrieved 2021-04-30.
^Cite error: The named reference Sibonya was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference Venter et al 1992 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference Sodwana Bay Lodge was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Taylor, William (1999). Africa's big five. Gerald Hinde, R. F. Du Toit. Johannesburg: Southern. ISBN 1-86812-779-6. OCLC 42659355.
SodwanaBay is a bay in South Africa on the KwaZulu Natal north coast, between St. Lucia and Lake Sibhayi. It is in the SodwanaBay National Park, and...
SodwanaBay National Park, is a park situated on the north eastern coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa; it is located within the iSimangaliso Wetland...
requirements in a sort of hibernation mode. The coelacanths which live near SodwanaBay, South Africa, rest in caves at depths of 90 to 150 m (300 to 490 ft)...
Reserve False Bay Park Kosi Bay Lake Eteza Nature Reserve Lake Sibhayi St. Lucia Marine Reserve St. Lucia Marine Sanctuary SodwanaBay National Park Mapelane...
Syngnathidae. The discovery of the species, which inhabits the waters of SodwanaBay in South Africa, was revealed by an international team of researchers...
Alfred to Mozambique)(Algoa Bay to western Pacific) Powder-blue surgeonfish, Acanthurus leucosternon Bennett, 1832 (SodwanaBay to Indonesia) Bluebanded...
The Bay of Pigs (Spanish: Bahía de los Cochinos) is an inlet of the Gulf of Cazones located on the southern coast of Cuba. By 1910, it was included in...
Reserve Haql Hol Chan Marine Reserve iSimangaliso Marine Protected Area SodwanaBay John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park Kadmat Island Ko Tao Lighthouse...
outstanding natural beauty such as the St Lucia greater wetland park, SodwanaBay and Kosi Bay. Game parks include Hluhluwe–iMfolozi, Ndumu and Tembe Elephant...
"When a diver goes missing, a deep cave is scene of a deeper mystery". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on July 20, 2015. Retrieved July 23, 2015...
peaolopesi, the Mozambique knifejaw, is a fish that occurs northwards from SodwanaBay. The fish is a rare species. Coastal Fishes of Southern Africa. Phil...
The deepest blue hole in the world is the Taam Ja' Blue Hole in Chetumal Bay, which was found to have a depth of 420 metres (1,380 ft) in 2024. The second...
KwaZulu-Natal, single specimen from SodwanaBay, endemic) Flat-lobed codium Codium platylobium Areschoug 1854, (False Bay to mouth of Mtwalume river in KwaZulu-Natal)...
Reserve Haql Hol Chan Marine Reserve iSimangaliso Marine Protected Area SodwanaBay John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park Kadmat Island Ko Tao Lighthouse...
Island), Taiwan, Panama (Coiba Island), Belize, Tofo Beach in Mozambique, SodwanaBay (Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park) in South Africa, the Galapagos Islands...
viable population of coelacanths (Latimeria chalumnae Smith, 1939) at SodwanaBay, South Africa". South African Journal of Science. 96 (11/12): 567–568...
Reserve Haql Hol Chan Marine Reserve iSimangaliso Marine Protected Area SodwanaBay John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park Kadmat Island Ko Tao Lighthouse...
Reserve Haql Hol Chan Marine Reserve iSimangaliso Marine Protected Area SodwanaBay John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park Kadmat Island Ko Tao Lighthouse...
from the river is often blown by strong south winds as far north as SodwanaBay, 100 km away. The changes threaten the coral reefs, which provide fish...
duty was carrying manufactured goods from Montreal up the lakes to Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. As Canada was still a part of the British Empire in the...
Reserve Haql Hol Chan Marine Reserve iSimangaliso Marine Protected Area SodwanaBay John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park Kadmat Island Ko Tao Lighthouse...
Great Barrier Reef, and further north, off the coast of Princess Charlotte Bay. Crescentic reefs are the most common shape of reef in the middle of the...
destroyed an aquarium in southern Florida, releasing six lionfish into Biscayne Bay. A lionfish was discovered off the coast of Dania Beach, south Florida, as...
Reserve Haql Hol Chan Marine Reserve iSimangaliso Marine Protected Area SodwanaBay John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park Kadmat Island Ko Tao Lighthouse...
Global Information
