Mullaloo Beach, Perth, closed for second day as two massive tiger sharks spotted close to shore

Frightening footage shows two massive sharks metres away from unknowing swimmers frolicking at a popular Australian beach.

Scary footage captured by drone videographer John this week shows one of the sharks checking out swimmers at Mullaloo Beach, northwest of Perth, which was closed shortly after the footage was captured. 

Two tiger sharks were filmed causally in the shallows at Mullaloo Beach, Perth, just metres away from unknowing swimmers (pictured)

One man is seen playing in the water with two young children, who at one point dive under the water, as the tiger shark swims by to check them out.

John told Daily Mail Australia one of the sharks has been ‘hanging around’ for three days.  

‘The shark has been hanging around for now three days, swimming so shallow that people have seen it with their own eyes and left the water,’ John said. 

‘The tiger is around 2.5m, making it a juvenile. It’s passed within 5m of people but hasn’t taken any interest in them.’

John said the shark was ‘moving around a lot’ travelling 30km up and down the coast with reported sightings at Mindarie and Scarborough beach. 

In other mesmerising footage, the predators’ distinctive dark stripes, which resemble a tiger’s pattern and is the reason for their name, are visible through the crystal clear water. 

The tiger sharks, measuring roughly 2.5 metres and three metres in length, were also seen circling large schools of baitfish (pictured)

Mullaloo Beach (pictured) was closed for a second day in a row after two tiger sharks were spotted casually swimming close to the shore

It comes after a young dad shared a video in September showing a large tiger shark lurking close to shore at another beach in the state. 

BJ and Janelle were travelling the country since May 2021 with their two kids when they visited World Heritage Site Shark Bay in Western Australia.  

In the video shared on their Instagram, Getting Lost Is Being Found, BJ walked up to the surface of crystal clear water and shook his foot, creating ripples in the surf.

Immediately a shadow appeared just in front of him and swam closer, revealing itself to be a large tiger shark thrashing around in the shallows. 

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Father-of-two BJ  was at Shark Bay in Western Australia checking the water before letting his children swim (left). Immediately a shadow appeared just in front of him and swam closer, revealing itself to be a large tiger shark thrashing around in the shallows (right)

Tiger sharks are regarded as one of the most dangerous shark species and have been responsible for a large share of fatal shark attacks. 

On Florida Museum’s International Shark Attack File, Tiger sharks ranked second – behind great white sharks –  for the number of recorded shark attacks on humans, with 39 fatalities out of 142 attacks since 1580. 

However, the predators were found proportionally responsible for the most deaths of all shark species in Australia, with 38 per cent of all tiger shark bites resulting in fatality, according to Taronga’s Australian Shark Incident Database. 

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT TIGER SHARKS  

Galeocerdo cuvier is the scientific name for tiger sharks (STOCK IMAGE, tiger sharks)

Tiger sharks are named for the dark, vertical stripes found mainly on juveniles, which as the shark matures often fade and almost disappear.

These large, blunt-nosed predators are second only to great whites in attacking people.

They are often called scavengers and are noted for having the widest food spectrum of all shark species. The stomach contents of captured tiger sharks included stingrays, sea snakes, seals, birds, squids, and even license plates and old tires.

Tiger sharks are often found in  tropical and sub-tropical waters throughout the world. They often visit shallow reefs, harbours, canals and also dwell in river mouths and runoff-rich water. 

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The tiger shark commonly grows to 3.25 to 4.25m in length and weigh around 175 to 635 kg, with females being the larger sex. 

Mature females are often over 3.7 metres, while mature males rarely get that large. 

 

Source: National Geographic