In a striking shift within one of the ocean’s most formidable predator hierarchies, great white sharks have effectively vanished from their traditional hunting grounds in South Africa following a series of brutal attacks by killer whales.
The normally dominant apex predators have abandoned key areas such as False Bay after orcas began targeting them with lethal efficiency, focusing on the nutrient-rich livers that provide the high-energy fats and oils essential for the whales’ survival. The evidence is grim: the carcasses of five great white sharks have washed ashore along the coastline, each bearing massive, gaping wounds where their livers were extracted.
Marine experts describe the orcas’ technique as particularly ruthless. The two individuals responsible for the False Bay incidents—known locally as Port and Starboard—have been observed squeezing their massive shark prey “like tubes of toothpaste” to force out the livers. Once primarily focused on seals, these orcas appear to have acquired a strong preference for shark livers, prompting a significant change in their hunting behavior.
The disappearance has been dramatic. More than 50 great whites were sighted in the area last year, continuing a pattern where the Shark Spotting Programme recorded an average of 205 sharks annually between 2010 and 2016. In 2018, sightings dropped sharply to just 50. Eight months into 2019, not a single great white has been spotted in False Bay or around the nearby Seal Island, a location famous for dramatic shark breaches that once drew tourists from around the world.
Marian Nieuwoudt, a Cape Town environment official, expressed concern over the unprecedented nature of the event.
“To our knowledge the absence of great white sharks from False Bay has not been recorded or reported before,” she said. “Great white sharks are top apex predators and we do not know how their absence from False Bay would impact the ecosystem. Neither do we know the causes for their disappearance. We remain hopeful that the great whites will return to False Bay and will announce our first sighting when this happens.”
The phenomenon is not isolated to South Africa. A recent study revealed similar behavior along the west coast of the United States, where great whites have been observed fleeing in large numbers whenever killer whales are detected nearby. Orcas, which can grow at least twice the size of even the largest great whites, clearly exert a powerful psychological and physical dominance in these encounters.
The ecological implications remain uncertain. Great white sharks play a critical role as apex predators in coastal marine environments, helping regulate populations of prey species such as seals. Their sudden absence could trigger cascading effects throughout the food web, though experts caution that more research is needed to understand the full consequences.
Tourism operators in the region, who have long offered cage-diving experiences to witness these majestic sharks up close, are also feeling the impact. Seal Island, just six kilometers offshore and home to large seal colonies, was once a prime viewing location. The great white, capable of reaching six meters in length, is one of the ocean’s most recognizable species and is responsible for more unprovoked attacks on humans than any other shark—though such incidents remain relatively rare despite the species’ fearsome reputation.
For now, the waters off South Africa’s coast are quieter than they have been in years. Whether the great whites will eventually overcome their fear and reclaim their territory, or whether the orcas’ newfound hunting strategy will lead to longer-term changes in the marine ecosystem, remains one of the most compelling mysteries currently unfolding in the world’s oceans. Marine biologists continue to monitor the situation closely, hoping for the return of these iconic predators.