Sharks at Hawks Nest: the nursery next door, and how we swim here with kids
Updated: Oct 6
Written by the owners of Tilly and Annies Place and Seacrest 7, Hawks Nest. Last reviewed October 2026.
Just off the beaches at Hawks Nest is one of the more remarkable things about this stretch of coast, and most visitors never know it is there. Port Stephens is a juvenile white shark nursery, studied by CSIRO scientists since 2007. It sounds alarming until you understand it, and once you do, it becomes one of the reasons this place feels so alive. This is what the research says, how the beaches are watched, and how we swim here with children.
In short: Juvenile white sharks, mostly under three metres, use the coast between Seal Rocks and Stockton Beach, including Bennetts Beach, from about spring to midsummer. At this size they mostly feed on fish. Bennetts Beach has been watched by Surf Life Saving NSW drones in recent summers and is patrolled by the local surf club, while calm Jimmys Beach faces the bay. Swim between the flags, avoid dawn and dusk, and check the SharkSmart or Dorsal app before you go in.
At a glance
What: a juvenile white shark nursery, mostly sharks under 3 m
Where: Seal Rocks to Stockton Beach, including Bennetts Beach
When: about spring to midsummer, peaking in November
Watched by: SLS NSW drones, the surf club and a listening station
Apps: SharkSmart and Dorsal
In this article
A white shark nursery on our doorstep
In 2007 a CSIRO team led by shark researcher Barry Bruce came to Port Stephens after local fishers reported young white sharks in the surf. What they found was a nursery: a stretch of roughly 50 to 60 kilometres of coast, from Seal Rocks south to Stockton Beach, where juvenile white sharks gather each year (CSIRO).
The sharks here are young, mostly between 1.5 and 3 metres long and a few years old. CSIRO found they often use the shallow surf zone, one to five metres deep, along northern Stockton Beach, Bennetts Beach and Mungo Brush, and that they arrive from early spring and stay into midsummer before most head south towards Bass Strait. Researchers have estimated up to 250 juveniles use the area, and tagged sharks stayed around 70 days on average (Newcastle Herald). Some even venture into the Port Stephens estuary itself, with detections peaking in November (Harasti et al., Marine Biology).
Why here? Food. The young sharks eat fish such as Australian salmon, mulloway, mullet and snapper, and they do not move on to seals and other mammals until they are about three metres long. As Barry Bruce put it: "Port Stephens is a great place to fish. It's just that the sharks are better fishers" (Australian Geographic).
How the beaches are watched
Drones. Surf Life Saving NSW flies shark-spotting drones over Bennetts Beach. In the 2024–25 season the drones made 563 flights there over ten weeks (News Of The Area), and if a shark comes within 250 metres of swimmers the beach is cleared for at least 30 minutes (News Of The Area). In early 2026 drones flew at Tea Gardens and Hawks Nest seven days a week until the end of April (News Of The Area), and from July 2026 the NSW Government expanded its drone program statewide, with weekend flights year round and daily flights from December to April on regional beaches (Australasian Leisure Management). Schedules and figures change each season, so treat the numbers here as correct at the time of writing, look for the drone flag, and ask the lifesavers on the day.
Listening stations. NSW installed a listening station off Hawks Nest in 2016. It picks up tagged sharks within about 500 metres and pushes alerts straight to the SharkSmart app; in its first nine days it logged 361 detections (Newcastle Herald). Tagged sharks are a small share of the sharks in the water, so treat an alert as information, not a complete picture.
Lifesavers. Tea Gardens-Hawks Nest Surf Life Saving Club patrols Bennetts Beach on weekends and public holidays through the season, with council lifeguards covering weekdays in summer (News Of The Area).
The apps worth having on your phone
SharkSmart: the free NSW Government app. It shows tagged shark detections from listening stations, drone sightings from Surf Life Saving NSW and official alerts, and you can set notifications for the area around you (SharkSmart).
Dorsal: an Australian app co-founded by former pro surfer Sarah Beardmore. It collects verified shark sighting reports from surfers, swimmers, fishers and drone operators, alongside official data (Business News Australia).
Older children love watching the map. It turns the sharks from a fear into something to follow, and it is a good way to talk about why the ocean has rules.
How we do it with kids
Shark bites in NSW are rare. Taronga's Australian Shark Incident Database recorded four unprovoked bites in the whole state in 2024, none of them fatal (Taronga). Rips are a far more common danger on ocean beaches, and the same habits protect you from both. No beach is risk free, and we would never tell you otherwise. What we can tell you is how we do it:
Choose the right beach for the day. For little ones, Jimmys Beach on the bay side is sheltered with very little surf (Visit NSW). It is not patrolled, so an adult stays in the water with them.
Swim between the red and yellow flags at Bennetts Beach, where lifesavers and drones are watching.
Skip dawn and dusk. Those are feeding times. Swim in the middle of the day instead.
Stay close to shore and swim in a group.
Avoid murky water, river mouths, and anywhere with fishing, bait fish or diving birds.
Dolphins do not mean there are no sharks. It is a common myth.
Check SharkSmart or Dorsal before you go in, and leave the water if lifesavers call it.
These come straight from the NSW Government's own advice (SharkSmart).
Living alongside them
The nursery is a sign of a healthy coast. The same water that feeds young white sharks brings the salmon runs, the dolphins in the bay and the pelicans on the river. We find that once children understand the sharks are youngsters learning to hunt fish, they stop being monsters and become neighbours, and the rules make sense.
Frequently asked questions
Are there sharks at Hawks Nest?
Yes. Port Stephens is a juvenile white shark nursery, and young white sharks use the surf zone along Bennetts Beach, mostly from spring to midsummer, according to CSIRO.
Is Bennetts Beach safe for swimming?
Bennetts Beach is patrolled by Tea Gardens-Hawks Nest Surf Life Saving Club on weekends and holidays in season and has been watched by shark-spotting drones in recent summers. Swim between the flags and follow the lifesavers' advice.
Which beach is best for young children?
Jimmys Beach, on the calm bay side of Hawks Nest, has very little surf. It is not patrolled, so stay in the water with them.
Which shark apps should I use?
SharkSmart, the free NSW Government app, shows tagged shark detections and drone sightings. Dorsal adds verified community reports.
When are the juvenile sharks around?
Mostly from about August or September to January, peaking in late spring, before most move south.
This is general information based on our own experience. Conditions change. Check Beachsafe, SharkSmart and NSW National Parks alerts before you go, and follow lifesavers' directions on the day.
Plan your stay
Two Waters has two places to stay in Hawks Nest, each sleeping six. Tilly and Annies Place is a three-bedroom townhouse a short walk from calm Jimmys Beach, ideal with young children. Seacrest 7 is a two-bedroom apartment with a shared pool, across the road from Bennetts Beach, patrolled in season. Pick your dates on either live calendar.
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