App will tell you if it’s safe in the water
Cape Town - new research from Stellenbosch University (SU)which shows that the South African white shark population is in double jeopardy. Not only do they have the lowest genetic diversity of all white shark populations worldwide, there are also only between 353 to 522 individuals left. Photo Credit: Shark Diving Unlimited Cape Town - new research from Stellenbosch University (SU)which shows that the South African white shark population is in double jeopardy. Not only do they have the lowest genetic diversity of all white shark populations worldwide, there are also only between 353 to 522 individuals left. Photo Credit: Shark Diving Unlimited
Beachgoers heading for a surf or a swim will soon be able to check conditions and the most recent shark sightings before the time, using a mobile app.
The Shark Spotters team is using crowdfund platform Backabuddy to try to raise R60 000 to create the app, which will be a one-stop shop for beachgoers, with real-time information from all the beaches where they operate.
It will have safety alerts, spotting conditions, whale activity, surf reports and environmental conditions.
Sarah Waries, project manager at Shark Spotters, said the organisation had already raised more than half the money and the response from the public had been positive.
She said the developers had started working on the app, expected to be launched at the beginning of October, in time for the school holidays.
“The more money we raise towards the app, the more cool features we can add.”
Shark Spotters, a registered non-profit organisation, was started in 2004 and is the only programme of its kind in the world.
Since being implemented, there has been only one fatal shark attack on beaches covered by spotters.
Waries said Shark Spotters believed the app would benefit the community even more by consolidating a variety of information into one user-friendly application.
She said the organisation had already received a donation of R30 000 to buy cellphones and data so spotters could update the app in real time directly from the beaches.