[1] The MPA was proclaimed by the Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Mohammed Valli Moosa, in Government Gazette No.

[4][5] The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries is responsible for issuing permits, quotas and law enforcement.

Rocky shores and reefs provide a firm fixed substrate for the attachment of plants and animals.

Finally there is open water, above the substrate and clear of the kelp forest, where the organisms must drift or swim.

The sand is continually being moved around by wave action, to a greater or lesser degree depending on weather conditions and exposure of the area.

This means that sessile organisms must be specifically adapted to areas of relatively loose substrate to thrive in them, and the variety of species found on a sandy or gravel bottom will depend on all these factors.

Sandy bottoms have one important compensation for their instability, animals can burrow into the sand and move up and down within its layers, which can provide feeding opportunities and protection from predation.

In temperate seas there are distinct seasonal cycles of phytoplankton growth, based on the available nutrients and the available sunlight.