Surfers call for shark kill following deadly attacks

Following three fatal shark attacks in two months, Western Australian fisheries officers have been given permission to catch and kill any shark they suspect of being responsible for the attacks.

A great white shark off the South Australian coast

Great white sharks can be found along a vast expanse of Australia's coastline (Michael Fontenot)

There's no way of telling which shark or sharks were involved without opening them up.

So is there any point to this killing, and is it the way we should treat an endangered species?

Surfing groups traditionally reject any suggestion of killing sharks but after recent attacks, some are changing their mind.

Michael Mackenzie speaks with Brett Merifield, WA champion long boarder from Dunsborough; Tony Cappelluti, Department of Fisheries WA Regional Manager Metropolitan (Perth); Ryan Kempster, marine neuroecologist at University of Western Australia

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