Bronze Whaler, the type suspected of attacking Laine
Hobson

New Zealand surfer, Laine Hobson was surfing off Snapper Point this weekend when a bronze whaler nudged his leg.

After continually pushing the shark away, Hobson was knocked into the water.

"I was then trying to keep the board between me and the shark - I was probably screaming by then - there was another guy close to me. Then the shark nudged me off my board and leapt on top of it and was thrashing about."

The eight other surfer with Hobson had apparently drifted away from him when he noticed his hand had a deep puncture wound. Luckily, Hobson was able to quickly swim back to shore. He said in an article,

"I don't know if the shark followed me in. I was concentrating on the shore and going as fast as I could, while trying to keep my toes out of the water.

"Being a surfer, you read about these things happening but I never thought it would happen to me."

While the attack seems unusual Department of Conservation shark expert, Clinton Duffy notes sharks respond to bright colors and Hobson's bright board.