Mieke van Tienhoven is fearless. She spends every winter underwater at Aliwal Shoal, photographing and observing ragged tooth sharks or ‘raggies” as they are affectionately called.

As project leader of the Green Trust-funded Ragged Tooth Shark Project she is compiling South Africa’s first comprehensive photographic database on these sharks.

An offshore reef, south of Durban, Aliwal Shoal is renowned for its raggies. Divers come from all over to swim with these sharks that congregate on the reef between July and November.

“Apart from photo-identifying hundreds of ragged tooth sharks, 26 are being tagged to monitor their movements via receivers attached to the reef wall,” explains this Johannesburg-raised scientist who has a Masters degree in Environmental Geochemistry from the University of Cape Town.

Since graduating she has worked for the CSIR, researching everything from acid rain to raggies. She is currently based in Durban where she is doing her doctorate on the Ragged Tooth Shark Project as well as research on ozone.

“The nice thing about science is that you can jump around between subjects because it provides you with the training and tools to tackle any scientific problem,” she explains.

“The most useful scientific tool is never to accept anything and to keep on questioning with an open mind. That’s how we came to realise that the earth is round.”

She is applying this tool to her research on the raggies – about which very little is known.

“It’s vital data because this reef is presumed to be a key mating area for the raggies. We need to understand their habits and movements in order to recommend a management plan.”

An important aspect of Van Tienhoven’s work is to monitor the effect of scuba divers on the raggies’ behaviour. On a busy weekend there can be forty sea crafts with at least eight divers apiece, launching from the shore at Umkomaas, the village closest to the reef.

One of the aims of The Green Trust’s raggie project is to recommend a sustainable eco-tourism- and environmental management plan for Umkomaas and Aliwal Shoal.

Research of this nature has significantly contributed to the announcement this year that Aliwal Shoal is to be declared a Marine Protected Area, together with four other regions along South Africa’s coastline.

“It’s great cause to celebrate,” says Van Tienhoven.
“Every single individual needs to be aware of the part we all play in making sure we don’t waste or destroy our planet’s resources.”