Shark Alert: Turtle carcass floating in water near Whaling Cove Beach near Albany sparks SharkSmart alert

A large turtle carcass that was found washed up on Whaling Cove Beach on Monday morning has sparked a shark alert for the area.

McKail resident Lata Wright said she spotted the body of the decaying turtle against the rocks when she arrived at about 10am on Easter Monday.

She said she did her best to alert authorities and beachgoers of the potential danger the body, which measures more than a metre long, posed.

“At times it didn’t move, then it looked like it would move against the tide for a minute or so,” she said.

“We tried many organizations to get someone to come out and look and move it, as being Easter and lots of tourists in town, we didn’t succeed, eventually the ranger came out and put a ‘wildlife in this area’ sign, whatever that means.

“We left just before 12 noon and even though we warned people, there was many people snorkeling and swimming metres away from it, and there is many sharks about with the salmon at the moment.”

A shark alert was posted on SharkSmart at 1.21pm, warning people to avoid the area as the carcass may attract sharks.

A spokesperson for the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions said the City of Albany was handling the incident.