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Return ticket: spatial use patterns of white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) from a shark-bite mitigation program in eastern Australia
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Return ticket: spatial use patterns of white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) from a shark-bite mitigation program in eastern Australia

Gonçalo G. Ramos, Dean C. Blower, Nuno Queiroz and Paul A. Butcher
Frontiers in Fish Science, Vol.4, pp.1-19
13/04/2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/frish.2026.1727267
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Abstract

bather protection habitat use human-wildlife conflict movement ecology SMART drumlines white shark
The inherent susceptibility of white sharks (<em>Carcharodon carcharias</em>), coupled with reported declines in abundance, has led to their global listing as “Vulnerable”, prompting substantial conservation efforts. However, white sharks' propensity to use coastal areas overlaps with human activities, causing safety concerns. In New South Wales (NSW), Australia, they are caught as part of the world's longest-running meshing bather protection program. After an unprecedented spate of shark bites in 2015, Shark-Management-Alert-in-Real-Time (SMART) drumline trials started in NSW as a novel catch-and-release program aimed at non-lethal bather protection. Using seven years of data, this study analyzed SMART drumline recapture events to describe white shark habitat use along the NSW coastline. In total, 890 individuals were tagged with a recapture rate of 24.5% (<em>n</em> = 218). Smaller individuals (fork length < 225 cm) and females were more commonly recaptured, suggesting size and sex-specific habitat preferences. Although recaptures occurred year-round and throughout the entire NSW coast, most occurred during the Austral winter and spring and along the northern NSW coast. There were few consecutive recaptures recorded in the same location, suggesting that white sharks move throughout relatively large ranges within coastal areas. Linear distances between recaptures were on average ~220 (SE ± 25) km, mostly representing northward travels. Despite some variation, most recaptures (~77%) were recorded within a year and ~45% within 90 days. These results are consistent with the described movement ecology for the species along NSW, corroborating the seasonal importance of NSW northern coast for juvenile white sharks, and the potential effect that the Eastern Australian Current has on their distribution. This study provides important insights into immature white sharks' inshore ecology, highlighting the value of capture-mark-recapture data collected from SMART drumlines to forecast shark movement for enhanced bather safety and species management.

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