Sydney -
A surfer was bitten by a shark in Australia on Tuesday before escaping to safety, police said.
South Australian police said the 48-year-old man was surfing at a beach at Streaky Bay, a town on the country's southern coast, in mid-afternoon when he was bitten on the arm by a shark.
“The man has been taken to Streaky Bay hospital with non-life threatening injuries,” police said in a statement.
It is not known what kind of shark was involved in the latest attack but sharks are a common feature of Australian waters.
While fatal attacks are rare, experts say the average number of attacks in Australia - about 15 a year, with at least one being fatal - have increased in line with population growth and the popularity of water sports.
Earlier this month a 24-year-old surfer died after being bitten in half in a savage attack north of the Western Australia capital Perth, the fifth such fatality in that region in less than a year. - Sapa-AFP