Sharks haunt Pukehina beach

By Natalie Bridges
Ominous grey triangular shark fins have regularly skimmed the Pukehina shoreline over the past couple of weeks.
But while experts say the bronze whaler sharks which have been seen every two to three days along the east side of the Pukehina shore are unlikely to attack, the Pukehina Regional Lifeguard Patrol are keen to find sponsorship to buy shark warning signs.
Fears about the devastating nature of shark attacks were raised at the weekend when a young woman was mauled to death by a pack of bull sharks on North Stradbroke Island, east of Brisbane.
Pukehina lifeguard Nora Moeke knows what it's like to be faced with the prospect of a shark. On the morning of Sunday December 30 she spotted a two-metre bronze whaler uncomfortably close to shore - the first of many sightings to follow at the Whakatane end of Pukehina Beach.
"I saw the length of the shark briefly just out of the water about 10m offshore. I said to people there 'keep clear of the water'. The majority cleared but some kept swimming - it's up to them."
A shark was seen most recently between 2-3pm on Sunday.
So far, there have been no reports of aggressive behaviour, although a kayaker claimed last Thursday that three of the sharks had knocked him out into the water. The man sustained no injuries.
Lilah Foote, head lifeguard at Pukehina, said the creatures were a fact of the ocean and should not put people off swimming. "We haven't had this many shark sightings before. They have been coming in reasonably close - about 5m offshore, in the wavebreak zone. It doesn't seem that the sharks are disturbing people at all. From our point of view, the sharks live in the ocean and we're invading their territory."
She admitted the need for shark-warning signs was now apparent and said the club was looking into purchasing some.
When a shark sighting occurred, a procedure was followed to protect the safety of swimmers but lifeguards have no authority to make people get out of the water.
"I advise them [the public] to stay out of the water for two hours but it is your decision if you want to swim or not."
Kelly Tarlton's aquarium curator Andrew Christie said the presence of the bronze whaler sharks near to the shore in the Bay of Plenty was expected.
"It's quite common for them to be in the surf and feeding on the schooling fish and so on ... large congregations of them are common and there is a very low rate of any troubles."
Mr Christie said the sharks were usually harmless but should be respected to avoid any unwanted encounters.
"A shark like that [bronze whaler] has the potential to be dangerous. Other sharks close to the beach are hammerheads, which also congregate in large numbers and will bask on the surface and that's why they will be seen. Then there are also the school sharks. None of these are particularly dangerous but they are to be respected."
The last fatal attack by a bronze whaler in New Zealand was in 1976 in Takaha and involved a spear fisher.
DOC marine scientist Clinton Duffy said it was only under certain conditions that the bronze whaler could become aggressive.
"They have attacked spear fishers because they are attracted by struggling fish and the blood produced by spear fishing. It raises their activity levels and their activity to feed. Sharks are sensitive to any low-frequency vibrations like struggling fish and that, combined with a sense of blood, is enough to trigger them to feed. They can become aggressive under those conditions but I don't know of any attacks in New Zealand."
Mr Duffy said the sharks can grow up to three metres long and primarily feed on schooling fish, stingrays and snapper.
Stuart Arnold, owner of Dolphin Seafaris in Tauranga, said he was well aware of the presence of sharks in Bay of Plenty waters but agreed there was nothing to fear. " The bronze whalers swim around in the Tauranga Harbour particularly, to feed on the stingrays. But they are totally harmless to humans.
"If you take a light plane from Tauranga and fly over the Mount Beach where they breed and give birth to their young, on a clear calm day you will see sharks in the water. "People have a bit of a phobia because they have a look about them. We put people in the water every day and we don't even bring sharks into the risk equation."