The body of a dead shark has been discovered washed up on Papamoa Beach this morning.
Estimated to be about three metres long, the shark was spotted by a Papamoa local on the shoreline near the Parton Road end of the beach at about 8am.
Phil Adlam, who found the shark, says it appears to have been sliced open, but he was unsure whether not it suffered the gash while it was alive or after it had washed ashore.
The J-shaped gash extends from the shark's gills to the top of its head and down to the tail.
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5 comments
TYPE OF SHARK?
Posted on 18-03-2017 09:37 | By Shocking!
Do we know what type of shark this is? one of the harmless bronze whalers or another type?
Just another Bronzie
Posted on 18-03-2017 12:32 | By About that
This is just another harmless Bronze Whaler. These things are everywhere along the coast and in the harbour. They swim amoungst swimmers, spawn in the harbour and are there all year round. Higher in numbers during the summer months feeding on bait fish. Looks like this one had an encounter with a boat and didn't come off too well.
Harmless, huh?
Posted on 18-03-2017 21:02 | By morepork
There is no recorded incidence of a bronze whaler ever having killed a human, while the human was on land... In the water, however, is a quite different story. In both Australia and NZ, people have been killed by bronze whalers and it is misleading to call them "harmless". If you know one is in the vicinity, the best advice would be to leave the water. Sharks are predators and they may well see humans as prey. It isn't malice, it is Nature. By the time he tastes you and realizes you are NOT a seal, he isn't in a state where he is likely to spit you out...
moreport
Posted on 20-03-2017 11:00 | By schmoo
The only known fatal attack by a Bronze Whaler Shark is dated in September of 2011 and happened in Australias Bunker Bay. The International Shark Attack File documents and lists about thirty three attacks on humans and boats and none of them were fatal. So pretty much harmless
@schmoo
Posted on 30-03-2017 17:57 | By morepork
You should do further research. An attack doesn't have to be fatal to be considered less than "harmless"... Tell the people who lost limbs that it was a "mostly harmless" attack... The bronze whaler is in the top 10 most dangerous sharks to Humans (at number 6), and there have been AT LEAST 2 fatalities caused by them here in NZ. Check this out: https://www.planetdeadly.com/animals/dangerous-sharks and then this: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10869124 and: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copper_shark#Attacks_on_HumansPerhaps we have a different definition of "harmless"...
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