A feeding frenzy unfolded frighteningly near the coast of Western Australia this week, as several sharks – including a five-metre great white – cruised in the shallows next to a whale carcass while hundreds of spectators watched from the sand.
The carcass washed up at City Beach in Perth early Monday morning, September 28, after rescuers discovered it at around 7.30am. Within about an hour, SharkSmart had recorded two white sharks measuring five meters (16 feet) and four meters just 10 meters offshore. A 3.5 meter shark of unknown species and another measuring 2.5 meters were also reported nearby.
Watch the insane footage, as onlookers stand just feet away, below:
Wildlife photographer Tom Kavanagh captured spectacular drone footage showing the sharks moving through shallow water with onlookers gathered nearby. Kavanagh said the animals were following the dead whale’s scent and “they were coming very close.” He described seeing two large white sharks “riding the shallows” as they moved up and down the beach.
Related: Watch: Great White Shark Turns Nantucket Shallows Into a Bloodbath
Lydia Moss, a regular at the beach, saw the sharks with her own eyes. “They’re bigger than I thought,” she told PerthNow, describing them as “massive”. Authorities quickly closed City Beach and surrounding stretches of coastline. Cambridge City Mayor Gary Mack issued an unequivocal warning: “People should not swim in this area at all,” adding that dogs should also stay out of the water.
The carcass is essentially an all-you-can-eat buffet for predators.
Ben D’Antonio, a researcher at the UWA Oceans Institute, called a dead whale “basically a pot of gold for a shark”, explaining that the high-fat meal can attract animals from the surrounding ocean. Shark expert Culum Brown warned that the smell of the decomposing whale could linger for several tides, even after the carcass was removed.
The timing is particularly troubling. Just 10 days earlier, Greg O’Neill, 63, was killed by a great white while swimming near the shore at Sorrento Beach, about 15 kilometers to the north. Authorities issued a rare catch-and-kill order after the deadly attack.
Authorities have since deployed drum lines to mark sharks gathered around the carcass, while beaches remain closed.
Related: ‘Kill the Shark’: WA Issues Rare Order After Fatal White Attack
This story was originally published by Surfer on September 29, 2026, where he first appeared in the News section. Add a surfer as Favorite source by clicking here.
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