SILVER ribbons of sardines streamed into KwaZulu-Natal yesterday, infecting the South Coast with the much-anticipated "sardine fever".

Though the pockets of the tiny fish were small because it was the "pilot" shoal, hundreds of people - including entrepreneurial fishermen - flocked to beaches between Mfazazana, north of Hibberdene, and Margate on the lower South Coast to witness the start of the annual sardine run.

KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board head of operations Michael Anderson-Reade, who has been with the "lookout crew", said: "Unfortunately water visibility in the area is fairly poor. But, sardines are visible when they make the surface.

"Netting has taken place at Hibberdene. The first net out consisted of 25 baskets. Other netters are attempting to net sardines at Banana Beach."

Each winter, most often in June or July, millions of silvery sardines leave the cold waters off Cape Point and make their way to KwaZulu-Natal.

And each year, holiday-makers flock to the province to catch a glimpse of the spectacle, which includes sharks, birds and dolphins in a feeding frenzy, preying on the sardines.