Unusual Marine Sightings - Whitetip Reef Sharks

This week at Cap Ternay we have made an exciting discovery in the bay. Underneath a coral bommie at a depth of 5m we found a pair of juvenile whitetip reef sharks. Lying on the sand, one with its head resting on the other, these small sharks seemed unafraid and simply watched us as we peered in on them.

Whitetip reef sharks rest by day and become active at night when they leave the cover of their hiding places to hunt along the reef. These sharks are harmless to divers but in a couple of year’s time these 40cm juveniles will possibly have grown to almost 2m in length. Although present all along the coasts of the Seychelles it is not common to see these sharks when diving.

The whitetip reef shark (Triaenodon obesus) is found throughout the Indian Ocean.

We have returned to the same spot on a few occasions now and each time the sharks have been there. Let’s hope they stick around for a while so we can keep an eye on them and see how they are doing.

Unusual Marine Sightings - Whitetip Reef Sharks