Australian bitten after taunting shark

SYDNEY - An Australian teenager who was taunting a shark with a dead fish ended up getting bitten on the heel, reports said Sunday.

Witnesses said the 17-year-old was dangling a fish he had caught to try and attract the one-metre (three foot) reef shark in shallow water near the west coast city of Carnarvon late Saturday and was bitten after being knocked over by a wave.

"(There were) heaps of people on the beach, heaps of kids in the water, so it was pretty silly really, feeding sharks when there were kids about," one witness told ABC Radio.

The teen was airlifted for surgery, the Royal Flying Doctor Service said.

Reef sharks are not considered particularly aggressive but have been known to attack if provoked.

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