Massive bull shark caught at Lake Macquarie

Matt Carr

Published: April 25 2017 - 8:18AM

A bull shark caught off Swansea at Lake Macquarie has stirred up a social media storm, with a photo of the enormous aquatic predator quickly gaining notoriety.

The image, shared by Offshore Fishing NSW, shows the dead shark hanging after "being gut hooked and a huge fight".

The creature towers over a man pictured beside its carcass, its length more than double his height.

The group reports it was "right off the cleaning tables at Blacksmith".

"There must be plenty around," Offshore Fishing NSW wrote.

The post drew an impassioned debate from those saying the shark should not have died, while many fishermen argued once it was "gut hooked" there was no way to release it.

A massive bull shark caught from Swansea Channel. Photo: Facebook/Offshore Fishing NSW

The photo has been shared thousands of times since it was shared on Monday night.

Spectacular images of sharks in the region have captured attention in recent days, most notably when drone footage of a shark feeding frenzy of mullet off Fingal Bay emerged on Monday.

Newcastle Herald

This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/content/adaptive/smh/environment/animals/massive-bull-shark-caught-at-lake-macquarie-20170424-gvrnb3.html