Far up into South Australia’s Spencer Gulf, in the rocky shallows of Stony Point near Whyalla, is a very special place where once a year, in the depths of winter, our Giant Cuttlefish congregate to mate and renew.

The ongoing struggle between fishers demanding their right to catch and the divers, the snorkellers and environmentalists, ebbs and flows with the seasons. In recent years the plans for a local desalination plant have been derailed though the ever present spillage risk of the Port Bonython Fuels facility on the Point Lowly peninsula remains.

This place is special because the cuttlefish have chosen a location so shallow and so accessible that even snorkellers (as long as you are not afraid of the cold) can enjoy the mating rituals, the male melee brawls, the shapeshifting subterfuge and their absolute aquatic grace.

This, our first visit back here in nearly fifteen years, shared with a couple of life long friends, was a wonderful chance to renew my fascination and awe of these beautiful and intelligent creatures.