Carcharhinus brachyurus

We’ll typically see Bronze Whalers on some of our Sydney dives as they cruise above us as we explore the depths around Sydney Harbour. Reaching lengths of 3.3m, they’re an impressive shark.

Unlike the more docile grey nurse sharks, Bronze Whaler Sharks aren’t considered as friendly to humans. We therefore keep a respectful distance and monitor the presence of their favourite food in our surroundings as this may make them more aggressive. That said, humans aren’t on the menu. Bronze Whalers feed on smaller sharks, rays, small fish and cuttlefish.

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Quick Facts on Bronze Whaler Sharks

The most common place recreational divers will see Bronze Whaler sharks is off Shelly Beach near Manly. On our dives, we will see these sharks with their fins braking the surface cruising as we cruise by on our way to our dive site, or we’ll see them while at anchor at many of Sydney’s best dive sites.

Our technical divers encounter Bronze Whaler Sharks while doing deco stops after dives around any number of our ship wrecks located both south and north of Sydney Harbour.

• Also known as the copper shark (feature a bronze-coloured ridge between their dorsal fins)
• Can become aggressive in the presence of food – known to spearfishermen as opportunistic catch thieves.