Dine and Splash

Every year at the same time, great schools of sardines journey up the KwaZulu-Natal shoreline on Africa's "Wild Coast." (The din from all those tin cans clattering together must be deafening.) This massive fish run draws the ocean's predators to the coast in search of a fresh, and plentiful, lunch. And dinner and breakfast, too, because there are billions of sardines in the water. And as impressive as the sight is, it was once almost commonplace. Hyper-efficient commercial fishing and various ecological crises have depleted the bounty of the sea — and that's not good for the planet. The OMNIMAX documentary Wild Ocean takes you into this teeming feeding frenzy to show you what's at risk, and how it can be saved. South Africa's government is working on establishing ocean reserves, places where commercial fishing is verboten, in an attempt to help the aquatic life recover and perhaps increase. Ain't nothing gonna help those migrating sardines, though; those salty bastards are gettin' chomped. Wild Ocean screens daily at the Saint Louis Science Center OMNIMAX Theater (5050 Oakland Avenue; 314-289-4400 or www.slsc.org) through Tuesday, August 25. Tickets are $7 to $8.
Mondays-Sundays. Starts: April 20. Continues through Jan. 14, 2009