Refresh your shark safety knowledge as Illawarra records a rise in sightings

With five shark sightings in the past 36 hours, the marine predators are determined to show whose domain it really is.

Surf Life Saving Illawarra duty officer Anthony Turner said shark safety was a big focus of the organisation.

"It's summer, more people are rock fishing, paddleboarding, swimming, surfing which is why there have been more people sighting sharks," Mr Turner said.

With the advancement of technology, he said, tracking shark activity has become easier, another reason for more recorded sightings.

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"There are shark listening stations installed in Wollongong, Stanwell Park and Kiama which means if any tagged sharks come close to the stations, a real-time alert is sent," he said.

Under the Department of Primary Industries' Shark SMART program, a tag is placed on sharks to map their movement, helping scientists and researchers understand them better.

"If you have the Shark SMART app on your phone, you'll be alerted every time a tagged shark is near the listening station so you know you have to stay away," Mr Turner said.

Mr Turner said he was appreciative of the funding by NSW government to keep beachgoers safe from shark attacks.

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"There is drone surveillance, helicopter surveillance and regular patrols," he said.

"Whereas earlier we had to rely on word of mouth for any shark sightings."

The water expert's advice to people is to "be alert not alarmed".

With the recent Perth shark attack claiming the life of 16-year-old Stella Berry, it becomes vital to go over the basic shark safety rules.

"If you do spot a shark in the water just calmly walk out, most times they will just leave you alone," Mr Turner said.

"And just remember simple things like swimming and surfing with people, not entering the water before dawn and after dusk and swimming between the flags," he said.

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Mr Turner said a large number of birds swooping into the water usually indicates the presence of fish.

"If there's bait fish, sharks are not going to be far behind," he said.

Lake Illawarra had an unexpected visitor, a hammerhead shark, over the weekend, shocking the fishermen who spotted it.

Liam Shean and Jackson Valk were fishing from a boat on the lake, opposite Reddall Reserve between the entrance and Windang Bridge, when they saw something approaching.

"It looked like seaweed coming up to us," Mr Shean said.

But it was not seaweed; it was instead a hammerhead shark that Mr Shean estimated was between 1.5 and two metres.