Perth's City Beach closed after whale carcass draws sharks close to shore

Perth's City Beach was closed on Monday after a dead whale washed ashore and sharks were spotted close to the coast. Surf Life Saving WA issued shark advice, while Western Australian authorities warned that the carcass could draw more sharks towards shore. The closure affects people using the beach and nearby water as officials work out how to remove the animal.

Surf lifesavers found the whale at about 7:30am on 28 September, according to reports by The West Australian and Australian Associated Press. The West Australian said the animal was believed to be a humpback; the AAP report, published by The Guardian, described it as appearing about six metres long. Neither account established an official identification or measurement.

Sharks sighted near the beach

The West Australian reported that Surf Life Saving WA closed City Beach between Floreat Drain Carpark and Bodmin Avenue. AAP described closures extending several kilometres in each direction of the carcass. The West Australian also reported a patrol boat, rescue helicopter and lifesaving patrol vehicle monitoring the area on Monday.

At least two sharks were seen metres offshore, The West Australian reported. It relayed SharkSmart sightings of a five-metre shark at 8:29am, an unidentified 2.5-metre shark at 9:12am and a four-metre white shark at 10:46am. Each was reported about 10 metres from shore. ABC News separately reported that authorities had warned of several sharks in the area.

The warnings came as people gathered to see the whale. The West Australian reported hundreds of visitors at the beach, including people who described seeing sharks in the water. Local resident Sophie Wormald told the newspaper that the activity could add to anxiety about swimming. The presence of a crowd does not change the advice to observe the beach closure.

Removal under consideration

Town of Cambridge mayor Gary Mack said officials were assessing what to do with the carcass. The preliminary plan was to remove it by truck and take it to a landfill site on Tuesday morning, he told The West Australian. He said the beach would likely remain closed until removal. Those were plans and expectations on Monday, rather than confirmation that the work had been completed or a final reopening time set.

Towing the whale out to sea was another option, Mack told AAP, but he said surf conditions could make that difficult. The carcass appeared to be wedged on a sandbar, he said. The Town of Cambridge was working with other agencies, according to The West Australian, while the method and timing of removal were still being discussed.

Western Australia's Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions says the relevant land manager is responsible for a whale carcass on a populated beach. Its guidance calls for the land manager, the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, and Parks and Wildlife to consult on removal. The guidance says whale carcasses are known shark attractants and can raise public health concerns near population centres.

The department says attempts to tow carcasses offshore have often failed, particularly near Perth, where currents can bring them back to land. It describes allowing a carcass to beach before removing it as a common approach in Western Australia. On remote stretches of coast with little human interaction, its general practice is to leave carcasses to decompose naturally. City Beach presents a different setting: a populated shore where authorities have already imposed a closure.

What is known about the whale

Whale Watch Western Australia owner Gemma Sharp told The West Australian she reported the dead animal after spotting it about four nautical miles off Scarborough Beach during a tour at roughly 4:30pm on Sunday. She said she saw no entanglement, orca scarring or visible injuries. Her observation does not establish how the whale died, and the reporting has not identified an official cause of death.

The shark warnings follow a fatal attack at Sorrento Beach, about 12 kilometres north of City Beach, on 18 September, as AAP reported. That earlier attack is context for local concern; the reports do not establish a connection between it and Monday's whale carcass. For City Beach, the immediate questions are when the carcass can be removed and when authorities will lift the closure. Neither had been settled in the available Monday reports.