Surfers and swimmers urged not to ignore shark bell at Dunedin beach

Dunedin surfers and swimmers are being urged not to be complacent about the shark bell, which has been sounded multiple times in recent weeks.

The bell was installed at the St Clair beach in the 1960s after shark attacks in the area - three of them were fatal.

The bell usually stands silent for months on end, but it has been rung four times over the past two weeks.

Photographer Mark Stevenson has been surfing the breaks around Dunedin for nearly 50 years.

He has always been aware that he was not alone.

"They're in the ocean, we can't fool ourselves. They're out there all the time even when you can't see them," he said.

"In the 70s and 80s when I first started surfing, we'd see sharks and white pointers and all sorts often, every week, especially over summer and after the attacks, we were more aware of them."

There had been fewer encounters in recent years, but Stevenson said there were definite signs it was time to get out of the water.

"I could see all the birds and that flying around and you get this uneasy feeling. You sort of know somethings not right so I came in and went. As soon as I came in, the shark came in. It was a white pointer, chased most of the crew - there was about 10 guys out," he said.

"One of the boys sort of got stuck on the outside, couldn't get past it between the rocks and it just watched him."

That was at Whareakeake, but they also visit St Clair beach - one of his favourite breaks.

"You get that feeling and I looked down and seen this black object moving around. The water's been quite murky in the last week or two," he said.

He was soon back on the shore.

"Next minute, it breached the water and the shark bell was rung ... I went for a surf later in that afternoon and I could see it again just underneath me."

Stevenson hoped the recent encounters would remind people to take the shark bell seriously if they heard it.

He was concerned some had become complacent after a lull in sightings.

St Clair is the homebreak for Jimi Higgins, the chair of Surfing New Zealand.

The number of recent sightings was unusual, he said.

"The locals understand what the shark bell is and the significance of the dangers and they respect it and listen to it," he said.

"However, a lot of the student population or tourists don't really pay much attention to it.

"When you're down at St Clair, you see people taking photos of it. It becomes sort of a tourist attraction and I'd hate to think that that lowers the significance of what that is actually there for."

It was a rare day to go surfing in Dunedin and not spot a seal or sea lion, Higgins said.

"You are going into their environment, into their domain so be respectful, whether it's a seal, sea lion or shark. That's their home. Give them space, exit the water and be safe," he said.

"When you do hear the shark bell or you see people leaving the water because there's a shark, you should follow suit and do the same."

Shark nets used to be in place at St Kilda, St Clair and Brighton beaches each summer, but they were removed more than a decade ago over cost and environmental concerns.

Auckland Museum's curator of marine biology Clinton Duffy said Dunedin had a reputation for sharks.

"There are several species that are relatively common around the Otago coast including Otago Peninsula. The most common large shark's probably the sevengill, the broadnose sevengill shark."

But attacks were rare - there was usually about one or two bites a year from a sevengill shark across the motu.

"We have a very, very low shark bite rate in New Zealand and even lower incidence of fatal shark attacks so, I mean, it's still safer to be at the coast than on the roads," he said.

So do not let them keep you out of the water, but if that bell rings, you know what to do

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