Giant hammerhead snared in Geraldton 'almost certainly died on release'

A 3.85-metre hammerhead shark caught by two young Perth fishermen has almost certainly died despite their efforts to return it to the wild, a local expert says. 

Jamie Dennis received plenty of media attention after he and a friend spent 90 minutes bringing in the shark to Pages Beach in Geraldton.

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WA fishermen massive catch

Two Perth fisherman have reeled in what could "unofficially" be the biggest shark ever caught. Vision: Nine News Perth.

The two well-meaning fishermen took it back out to sea alongside their kayak, where it swam away, they told Nine News Perth.  

But Jessica Meeuwig, director of the University of Western Australia's Centre for Marine Futures, said University of Miami research showed 56 per cent of satellite-tagged caught hammerheads died even after being treated with "kid gloves" by professionals.

The process produced huge amounts of lactic acid in sharks' muscles and there was also the risk of infection from the hooks in their mouths.

"They are so sensitive to tagging most scientists don't want to touch them," she said. 

"They are among the most endangered shark species in the world. Humans have reduced their number between half and 80 per cent over the past 30 years. 

"So that individual shark was a mature breeding animal that represents part of what could be the 20 per cent remnant in the world. That's what we are deciding to have sport with." 

The two friends told other fishermen on Facebook that the shark had taken a fresh store-bought mullet bait that had been in the water about 10 minutes.