Experts say WA has slim chance of finding shark linked to fatal Sorrento Beach attack
Experts say authorities are unlikely to identify the great white shark linked to the fatal Sorrento Beach attack that killed swimmer Greg O’Neill.
PEOPLE & COMMUNITY
A marine expert has questioned the Western Australian government’s decision to issue a catch-and-kill order for the shark believed to have fatally attacked swimmer Greg James O’Neill at Perth’s Sorrento Beach.
Culum Brown, a behavioural biologist from Macquarie University’s Ecology and Evolution Laboratory and an expert in shark-monitoring drones, said authorities had almost no chance of finding the animal.
The 63-year-old was swimming close to shore on Friday morning when he was attacked by what was believed to be a three-metre great white shark. Authorities launched a major search for both Mr O’Neill’s body and the shark, which they believed they had located before losing track of it.
Mr O’Neill’s body had not been recovered at the time of publication.
On Saturday, Western Australian Fisheries Minister Jackie Jarvis issued an “extraordinary” catch-and-kill directive for the shark. She said the decision was based on “the unique circumstances of the incident”, including “the threat posed by the shark” and the possible recovery of evidence for the coroner.
However, Professor Brown said white sharks could travel hundreds of kilometres and were constantly moving, making the search similar to finding “a needle in a haystack”.
“White sharks travel great distances and are constantly on the move,” he said.
“At this point, that shark could be hundreds of kilometres away.”
Professor Brown said the only way to establish whether a captured shark was responsible would be to kill it and examine its stomach contents for human remains.
“So, what’s the plan? To catch every white shark along the west coast until they find the right one?” he said.
“It seems quite absurd.”
He instead called for greater investment in shark-spotting drones, saying they could help authorities detect sharks before attacks occurred.
“Drones are an incredibly efficient tool,” Professor Brown said.
He said drones were substantially cheaper than fixed-wing aircraft or helicopters and did not create the bycatch problems associated with shark nets.
He described drone surveillance as a “win-win” for swimmers and sharks.
The New South Wales government allocated an additional $34 million for shark-spotting drones in June, following an attack at Sydney’s Coogee Beach.
Ms Jarvis said expanding the use of drones along Western Australia’s extensive coastline was “absolutely under consideration”.
She said the government would first review the state’s existing shark-mitigation measures, including tagging and tracking programs, the shark-alert app, warning sirens, shark enclosures and personal deterrent devices.
The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development has deployed shark-capture equipment near Sorrento Beach. Drum lines normally used for tagging sharks have been placed about 1.5 kilometres offshore.
Tributes have been paid to Mr O’Neill, with flowers left in his memory near the beach.
Western Australian Deputy Premier Rita Saffioti backed Ms Jarvis’s response, including the catch-and-kill order.
“The minister made a decision based on the advice she received, which, as I understand it, came from both police and fisheries,” Ms Saffioti said.
The decision has also drawn criticism from the Greens. Sophie McNeill, the party’s spokesperson for healthy oceans, described the order as inhumane and ineffective.
She called for more funding for shark-spotting drones and helicopters, as well as an expansion of the state’s shark-tagging program.
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