In the latest Duiken magazine our article about Reunion and its Shark Crisis was published.

We visited the island in 2015 and experienced first hand both its raw beauty as well as its dark side; the present shark issue.

The tropical island with its rugged terrain and incredible sealife treated us really well. We hiked the at-the-time active volcano Piton des Neiges and wandered through the mighty collapsed caldera known as Mafate. We freedived with wild humpback whales and various dolphins and on top of the reefs.

But one of the main reasons for our visit to the island was to come to understand the causes behind the so called "Crise Requin".

I am really happy to share this story in the article in Duiken magazine because of its conservation message, but am also a bit sad that the situation on the island has not changed at all over the past few years (in terms of numbers of needless victims).

Too many surfers still take too big of risks in the sometimes murky waters around the island.

Although I created the photo story almost two years ago, it is still very much relevant.

After our visit multiple extra surfers have been bitten and killed.

Amongst these surfers were even guys that I might have photographed as one of them was a vigie requin.

On the positive side of things: the locals at Reunion are working out ways to live with the presence of sharks while the debate on its causes and solutions continues.

Plus we were really happy to have met locals within the surf community that were very open to discuss the topic, even while they are emotionally impacted by the story themselves.

Can't wait to go back to this beautiful island soon!

You can find more photos of the photostory here.