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Watch: Terrifying footage shows huge shark lurking under surfer

A drone has captured the nail-biting moment a two metre shark lurked beneath a blissfully-unaware surfer at Bondi beach.

Videographer Rob Norman was using his drone to film seals when he noticed they weren’t the only creatures swimming off the picturesque coastline.

Rob spotted a dark shadow under the waves, a two metre grey nurse shark that began slowly stalking an inexperienced surfer as the sun was setting.

A two-metre shark has been spotted swimming dangerously close to a surfer on Bondi beach. Source: Caters
A two-metre shark has been spotted swimming dangerously close to a surfer on Bondi beach. Source: Caters

Rob, from Bondi, said he was initially concerned but was powerless to intervene during the close encounter, which he filmed in August 2017 but shared on social media for the first time this week.

He said: “When you see a shark move towards a human, your instincts are ‘that’s not good’.

“I kicked into gear and tried to think about what I could do, but I was a bit helpless because I was too far away.

“I was in a tricky situation because I couldn’t warn the guy, the only thing I could do was to potentially crash the drone or fly next to them in the water.

“Luckily the shark just cruised up like a dog would sniff something. As the surfer turned to catch the wave, it swam off.”

Rob said he was relieved when the grey nurse shark swam off without the surfer spotting it.

A shark has been seen swimming very close to a surfer. Source: Caters
A shark has been seen swimming very close to a surfer. Source: Caters

Grey nurse sharks are a threatened species in Australia, and are not usually known to be aggressive but may be dangerous if provoked or cornered.

Rob said he has worked all over the planet – but it was an honour to capture the scenes on home soil.

Rob said: “I was definitely relieved the shark didn’t have a go at the surfer. You never want to see that happen.

“It’s probably better for him that he didn’t know. Most people would panic and splash around.

“We see some crazy stuff around the world but it’s great to see it on your doorstep.

“For me, I think it proves sharks aren’t out to get us – they happily share the ocean with us.”

For more go to Knack studios.