Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Central Asia yurt night stars
Uzbekistan • 15 days, 14 nights
Central Asia Road Trip: Backroads & Bazaars
from
Caucasus - Geghard Monastery, Armenia
Armenia • 15 days, 14 nights
Caucasus Road Trip: Azerbaijan, Georgia & Armenia
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Al Jazirah Al Hamra Heritage Village
Complejo Cultural Fábrica Imbabura
Guptill's Arena
In this deceptively simple dish, top-quality ingredients are paramount.
Kor Panich
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
In this deceptively simple dish, top-quality ingredients are paramount.
Kor Panich
Customize your bowl with sliced pork, pork balls, fish cake, and offal.
Rung Rueang
Pasties are an Upper Michigan tradition dating back to mining days.
Lehto’s Pasties
Stock up on picnic supplies with a side of history.
Horton Bay General Store
Take some of Michigan’s produce home with you.
American Spoon
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Podcast: Finding ‘The Great Gatsby’ in Louisville
Here’s which treats you can safely lug home without risking a fine.
Dear Atlas: What International Food Can I Legally Bring Into the U.S.?
Cely’s map is not only accurate, but captures the unique characteristics of Congaree’s trees and waterways.
How One Biologist Drew a Hyper-Accurate, Ranger-Approved Map of Congaree National Park
Though they’re protected inside the park, wolves can be killed when they cross its borders.
Wolves Have a Bad Reputation. One Yellowstone Naturalist Is Trying to Fix It.

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All South Africa Cape Town Seal Island

Seal Island

Haven for Cape Fur Seals, until the Ring of Death of jumping Great White Sharks arrives.

Cape Town, South Africa

Added By
Allison Meier
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
  Wikimedia
  Wikimedia
  Derek Tam/Flickr
  Derek Tam/Flickr
  Wikimedia
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Located in False Bay just off the coast of Cape Town, Seal Island is a small granite landform absolutely swarmed with Cape Fur Seals.

The piles of seals use the island as their main breeding ground and usually are left in peace. Humans have tried to inhabit the island, but failed, once as sealers in the early 20th century and later during World War II with an installation of a radar that was soon destroyed by the elements.

However, the Great White Sharks also love the little island and at certain times of the year create a circle around it known as the Ring of Death. Any seal that swims too far is attacked by the sharks that actually leap from the water with the seals in their teeth before crashing down into the waves.  

Related Tags

Sharks Animal Islands Islands Animals
Atlas Obscura Adventures

Wild South Africa

Marine wildlife and Kruger Safari

Book Now

Community Contributors

Added By

Allison

Published

October 18, 2013

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://www.elasmo-research.org/education/white_shark/predation_v1.htm
  • http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/11/1124_031124_flyingsharks.html
Seal Island
Cape Town, 7941
South Africa
-34.138147, 18.582727

Nearby Places

Boulders Beach Penguin Sanctuary

Cape Town, South Africa

miles away

Beach Hut Whale Bones

Cape Town, South Africa

miles away

Scratch Patch

Cape Town, South Africa

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Cape Town

Cape Town

South Africa

Places 17
Stories 6

Nearby Places

Boulders Beach Penguin Sanctuary

Cape Town, South Africa

miles away

Beach Hut Whale Bones

Cape Town, South Africa

miles away

Scratch Patch

Cape Town, South Africa

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Cape Town

Cape Town

South Africa

Places 17
Stories 6

Related Stories and Lists

100 Wonders: An Island You Don't Want to Visit

islands

By Dylan Thuras

Animal Islands: Seven Islands Ruled by Creatures Great and Small

essential guide

By Allison Meier

Related Places

  • Marble tortoise statues on Kusu Island

    Singapore

    Tortoises of Kusu Island

    Legend holds that a tortoise turned itself into this island to save two shipwrecked sailors.

  • Swinburne Island.

    Staten Island, New York

    Swinburne Island

    This abandoned artificial island off the coast of New York City is now home to dozens of harbor seals.

  • Bass Rock Gannet Colony.

    East Lothian, Scotland

    Bass Rock

    This tiny island is home to the world's largest colony of Northern gannets.

  • Okishima cat.

    Ōmihachiman-shi, Japan

    Okishima Island

    A Japanese cat island also populated by the descendants of a band of banished samurai.

  • A wallaby on Inchconnachan.

    Argyll and Bute, Scotland

    Wallabies of Inchconnachan

    An eccentric aristocrat brought these Australian natives to their current Scottish home.

  •  Ilha da Queimada Grande (Snake Island)

    Brazil

    Snake Island (Ilha da Queimada Grande)

    Off-limits and full of venomous pit vipers, Brazil’s Snake Island has a frighteningly apt nickname.

  • Skomer Island

    Pembrokeshire, Wales

    Skomer Island

    A wildlife paradise, this island is one of the world’s most important habitats for burrow nesting seabirds.

  • Ursula Island

    Puerto Princesa, Philippines

    Ursula Island

    This tiny island protects a number of rare bird species by only allowing visitors to set foot on the beach.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.