Australia spends millions of dollars on shark management, from tagging and drumlines to nets and drones – but is it working?

Following the latest fatal attack in Western Australia, marking the nation’s fourth in less than 12 months, marine biologist Eric Clua said a more targeted approach was needed.

After studying dozens of bull sharks, he found only a few showed bold, risk-taking behaviour around humans, leading to a new focus on identifying “problem sharks”.

Instead of simply tagging sharks, Clua proposes a DNA database that could match bite wounds to specific sharks after an attack.

The program is set to roll out in waters around the world, stirring debate over whether Australia should follow.