Plettenberg Bay, South Africa

Plettenberg Bay Whale Heritage Area

Information

Nestled on South Africa’s coast, with resident Bryde’s Whales, Indo-Pacific Bottlenose and Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphins.

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Description

Situated in the Western Cape Province of South Africa, Plettenberg Bay is a destination of unparalleled natural beauty and ecological significance. Nestled along the exquisite Garden Route, it graces the shores of the Indian Ocean, bordered by two Marine Protected Areas, Tsitsikamma and Robberg, a testament to its dedication to marine conservation.

Within this haven lies The Garden Route Biosphere Reserve, a UNESCO-acclaimed gem, attesting to the exceptional biodiversity that lives here. The azure waters around Plettenberg Bay are a sanctuary for a mesmerizing array of ocean wildlife. These MPAs serve as vital feeding and nursery grounds for an array of resident and migratory cetaceans, creating a symphony of life that graces this coastal paradise.

Permanent residents include the regal Bryde’s Whales, Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphins, the endangered Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphin, and the spirited Common Dolphins. During the migration season, the graceful Southern Right Whales and Humpback Whales make their majestic presence known, weaving an enchanting tapestry of marine life.

Yet, it is the regular presence of the apex ocean predator, the Killer Whale, that truly distinguishes this marine sanctuary. Their grace and power are a testament to the thriving ecosystem of Plettenberg Bay.

The Robberg peninsula, stretching 3.5 kilometres into the expanse of the Indian Ocean, is a breath-taking spectacle. Here, one can marvel at both migratory and permanent whale populations, witness the powerful presence of Great White Sharks, and observe the lively breeding colony of Cape Fur Seals. The skies and cliff tops are adorned with a diverse array of indigenous bird species. As one navigates the trails of the peninsula, they uncover the secrets of millennia, including the ancient, archeologically important, Nelson Bay Cave. Undoubtedly, a visit to the Robberg peninsula stands as the pinnacle of any journey to Plettenberg Bay, offering a truly unique experience that embodies the essence of Bahia Formosa's beauty and diversity.

The annals of history hold Plettenberg Bay in high regard, with the Portuguese explorer Bartholomew Dias leaving his mark here in 1647. It's a place where history and nature converge, creating an immersive experience that transcends time.

Today, Plettenberg Bay stands as a testament to the town’s commitment to safeguarding it’s precious ecosystems. The annual Plett Ocean Festival, a celebration of this marine wonder, beckons both locals and global explorers to partake in its conservation. Ongoing research projects vigilantly monitor the endangered humpback dolphin population and tirelessly combat threats, such as entanglements of Bryde’s whales in fishing gear.

Two boat-based whale watching (BBWW) operators have been given permits by the South African Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment (DFFE) to conduct whale and dolphin watching in Plettenberg Bay. Other operators offer experiences like diving, or observing Cape Fur Seals, Blue, Mako and White sharks, small pelagic fish and anchovy.

For their tireless dedication, Plettenberg Bay has garnered numerous sustainable tourism awards. The reduction of carbon emissions and vigilant efforts against pollution underscore its status as a beacon of responsible tourism. This is a destination where nature's splendour and human stewardship harmoniously come together, inviting visitors to be part of this extraordinary journey.

Motivation

Plettenberg Bay's marine ecology will require careful management of the balance between ecological sustainability and commercial tourism interests. It is believed that WHA accreditation will provide an objective and credible international benchmark for the town's performance in this regard.

WHA accreditation will also provide credible international recognition for Plettenberg Bay’s marine and coastal ecology with direct benefits accruing to commercial tourism interests, significant marine science linkages with international counterparts and the all-important unifying consequence this initiative holds for the town and various communities.

One of the two most important benefits to Plettenberg Bay will be an international and credible benchmark for measuring the town's performance against a marine utilisation sustainability benchmark.

In addition, WHA accreditation should assist in growing international marine tourism in the town. This should have a significant impact on alleviating unemployment and poverty in the area. As mentioned above, the unifying (of various stakeholders) consequence this initiative holds for the town and various communities cannot be underestimated.

Boundary Map

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Species or habitats

Humpback whales can be observed in Plettenberg Bay’s waters from May to December during their migrations. Between June and October, Southern right whales appear off the South African coast to breed and calve. There are also rare and opportunistic encounters with species such as killer whales, false killer whales, sei whales, minke whales and dwarf/pygmy sperm whales.

Area Features

Humpback whale, Southern right whale, Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin, Indian Ocean humpback dolphin, Bryde's whale - specie

Stability

Humpback whales are increasing and considered Least concern, as are Southern right whales and Bryde's whales. However, Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins are classified as Near threatened and Indian Ocean humpback dolphins are Endangered.

Threats

Coastal development, agricultural run-off/pollution, entanglement in coastal fishing gear and marine debris, vessel strikes, reduced prey availability, and increasing underwater noise (e.g., oil and gas exploration, pile driving, marine traffic, navigational sonar). Another threat are the Nurdles washed up on beaches.

Actions taken for protection

Specific projects to mitigate/address threats include:

- Contribution to the National Endangered Humpback dolphin consortium (SouSA); ongoing data collection and monitoring.

- Bryde’s whale entanglement in bottom-mounted coastal fishing gear. Results from suction-cup attached data loggers helped to inform gear changes and revised fishing permit regulations, and have been enforced at a ministerial level (to date no further entanglements have occurred).

- National BBWW regulations: a) require the industry to support research by providing platforms of opportunity for data collection; b) imposing speed restrictions on boats to minimise possible collisions with cetaceans; c) report any injured/entangled cetaceans; and local BBWW operators collect marine litter at sea and on the beaches regularly.

- Locally trained whale disentanglement crew working as part of the South African Whale Disentanglement Network (SAWDN) in partnership with NSRI (the National Sea Rescue Institute).

- Industry, citizen scientists, and researchers report cetacean sightings to Seafari App for continued monitoring of occurrence and distribution data.

- Water quality testing by CapeNature to monitor possible sources of pollution into Plettenberg Bay.

- Plettenberg Bay is unique in that the town was used as a location to launch a public awareness campaign aimed at boat-owners when watching cetaceans in the bay.

- Bitou Municipality ran a volunteer beach cleaning campaign to collect washed-up nurdles.

Community Importance

Plettenberg Bay is an important part of the coastal economy of South Africa and is regarded as one of the country's leading whale-watching destinations. It is estimated that the town attracts over 10 times the number of South African and foreign visitors than its permanent population. The total economic value of marine boat-based tourism expenditure for the town was calculated to be ZAR371.2 million (US$ 24.1 million) per year as of 2020, i.e. approximately 6% of total tourism spend in the town. Almost half (49%) of all the visitors to the town in 2020 came to Plettenberg Bay primarily to participate in its marine boat-based tourism activities. Marketing of this destination is dependent on its award-winning beaches, clean seas, surrounding mountains and regular sightings of whales and dolphins which attract local and foreign visitors.

The presence of whales and dolphins offers unique opportunities for educational programs and research initiatives. Whales and dolphins captivate the interest of people, local community and tourists, and can serve as ambassadors for marine conservation. Learning about their behaviours, migration patterns, and conservation status during whale watching tours can help raise awareness about the importance of protecting marine ecosystems and the need for sustainable practices.

The initiatives in Plettenberg have been helping scientists understand the effects of pollution, climate change, and other human activities on oceans. This knowledge is crucial for implementing effective conservation strategies that benefit both marine life and local communities.

Wildlife Watching Guidelines

The two permitted BBWW companies operating in Plettenberg Bay’s are bound by South African Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment (DFFE) permit regulations. South Africa has excellent legislation for BBWW operations which addresses aspects directly relating to boat-cetacean interactions, e.g. speed and angle of vessel approach, duration of encounter, distance to animals, etc, passenger and crew safety (in accordance with the South African Maritime Safety Authority), fair labour practises, environmental awareness and protection, e.g. collecting marine litter, supporting research, by providing space on vessels for researchers or access to data, and general marine conservation, such as supporting stranding networks, reporting entangled marine life.

Guidelines for whale watching are:

-Vessels should travel at a no wake speed within 300m of any whale and within 500m vessels must proceed at less than 10 knots.

-Approaches must be parallel with the whale from the side.

-Vessels should get no closer than 50m, and shouldnt approach cow-calfs pairs closer than 300m. Vessels should not get closer than 25m to dolphins and 50m to mother and calves or the endangered humpback dolphin.

-Operators should allow the whale to guide the nature and duration of the interaction, and should avoid regular engagement.

-Maximum time at close contact is 20 min and the animal must not be revisited more than twice in a day by the same operator. There must be 3 hours before revisits.

Criteria

1. Cultural Importance Of Wildlife

INDICATOR 1.1 Cultural heritage links people to cetaceans demonstrating an understanding and on-going respect for cetaceans and habitats.

Indicator 1.2 The presentation and interpretation of cultural heritage that is linked to cetaceans is respectful and sensitive to those living and working in the Whale Heritage Area.

Indicator 1.3 Efforts are in place to continually revive, reimagine, and enhance cultural heritage linking people to cetaceans.

Indicator 1.4 The community regularly monitors the impact of cultural heritage linked to cetaceans and takes action to strengthen that impact based on the latest evidence.

Criteria

2. Respectful Human-Wildlife Coexistence

Indicator 2.1 The community works collaboratively to ensure cetaceans are protected through research, nature conservation, regenerating biodiversity, and safeguarding individual animals from harm.

Indicator 2.2 The community raises awareness about the protection of cetaceans, including ways for everybody to help contribute to solutions.

Indicator 2.3 The community influences the protection of cetaceans through strategies that are based on practical, scientific, or traditional knowledge.

Indicator 2.4 The community recognises that there may be differences in opinion, interests or values related to the protection of cetaceans, and meets this challenge through continual dialogue, collaboration, and mediation where necessary.

Indicator 2.5 The community supports and implements sustainability and environmental initiatives that have a positive impact on cetaceans and the marine environment.

Indicator 2.6 The community regularly monitors the health and protection of cetacean populations and adopts strategies based on the latest evidence.

Criteria

3. Responsible Wildlife Tourism

Indicator 3.1 The community has strategies in place to identify and raise awareness about exploitative, extractive, or consumptive captive or wild cetacean tourism attractions.

Indicator 3.2 The community promotes responsible wild whale and dolphin watching experiences.

Indicator 3.3 Responsible whale and dolphin watching guidelines are adopted within the Whale Heritage Area and regularly updated to follow expert or science-based best practice. These guidelines conform to international, national, or local legislation where it exists.

Indicator 3.4 Efforts are made to enforce responsible whale and dolphin watching guidelines and international, national, or local legislation where it exists.

Indicator 3.5 Tourism and the behaviour of tourists are well managed to reduce negative impacts on cetaceans and habitats.

Indicator 3.6 The community plays a key role in designing and operating responsible whale and dolphin watching experiences, which provide direct social and economic benefits.

Indicator 3.7 The community monitors the impacts of tourism on targeted species and habitats and regularly acts to reduce those impacts based on the latest evidence.

Management Plan

Number of people engaged in the Wildlife Heritage Area project	400 000 people visited Plettenberg Bay in 2018 (in accommodation). 15% are National tourists and 85% are International tourists. The current population of Plettenberg Bay is 61 645 (2018)
Number of individuals, organisations, and businesses working together	10
Number of people employed in wildlife-related activities	People directly employed by activities that relate to cetaceans: (Pre-Covid data) - The marine boat-based tourism sector (including two permitted whale watching companies and one swim-with-seals) in Plettenberg Bay creates 37 full-time and direct employment opportunities. An estimated 55.5 employment opportunities are created through indirect or induced employment (e.g., food & accommodation, transport, other tourism activities, boat servicing sector, construction of hotels and retail shops supporting tourism activities). When combined with the 37 directly employed in the industry, these 92.5 employment opportunities support an estimated 158 dependents.
Estimated economic contribution to the local economy	Approximately ZAR100 million by activities directly related to cetaceans, and approximately ZAR200 million indirect and induced expenditure (by activities indirectly related to cetaceans).