The mystical communion between Great Whites and surfers continues!
A couple of mornings ago, a teen surfer was hit by a Great White at Avoca Beach, the very same stretch of sand where former world number seven Ace Buchan is trying to offload his beloved beach house for three-mill plus.
Anyway, the kid, no name or age given, was bitten on the hand, went home and called the ambos who took him to the local hozzy where he was discharged shortly after.
The sharks was quickly identified by as a Great White.
“NSW DPI shark biologists have assessed photographs of the teenager’s injuries and surfboard and have determined the bite indentations are indicative of a white shark,” a spokesperson for The NSW Department of Primary Industries said.
As you’d expect, Avoca Beach and surrounds were automatically shuttered as drones flew overhead, looking for the black stain of a Great White swaying feverishly in its waters.
The attack, real minor, although I ain’t in a rush to have a Great White attached to the end of my arm, came one day before the NSW government decided, against a groundswell of opinion, to redeploy shark nets across 51 beaches from Newcastle to Wollongong.
A lot of people ain’t into nets ‘cause they’re a dumb, blunt instrument, killing Whites, sure, but also mowing through plenty of happy mammals, turtles, dolphins and so on.
In 2021-22, 376 marine animals got ‘emselves tangled in the nets, most of ‘em what they call “non-target” creatures like rays and turtles, even a humpback whale.
Roughly, a third of ‘em survived the experience.
The Department of Primary Industries reported 28 Whites, 12 Bulls and 11 Tigers were put out of commission by the nets.
