On Saturday (16 Jan 2021) NIWA Marine Ecology Technician Jon Stead was spearfishing in Nelson when he ran into a rather inquisitive bronze whaler shark 🦈.

After shooting a kingfish, the shark bit the fish off his line and then charged at Jon a few times. Jon kept his cool and managed to not only fend the shark away but film the whole encounter in spectacular detail. 🎥⠀⠀
NIWA New Zealand shark expert Warrick Lyon says encounters like these are common in summer when bronze whalers move into shallow coastal waters. ⠀⠀
“Bronze whalers are found around reefs, beaches and estuaries between the top of the South Island and the top of the North Island. They like fish and they'll eat it dead or alive, so that puts them in direct contact with people who catch fish. They’re quite clever as well. Bronze whalers learn to go to certain beaches at certain times to get food and divers will say that they recognise the twang of a speargun going off like it’s a dinner bell. They'll come screaming in and go for the fish.

Jon did the right thing. He pushed the shark away with his speargun and he kept his eye on it.

"You want the shark to know you've seen it. Bronze whalers have bitten divers before, but it's not common.”

As apex predators, sharks play an extremely important role in marine ecosystems and conserving shark populations is vital to keeping our oceans healthy. 👀🦈

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