Shark caught morning after surfer killed at NSW beach

A shark has been caught off a beach on the New South Wales Mid North Coast where a surfer was fatally mauled yesterday.

Authorities caught the shark on their drumline off Tuncurry beach, near Forster.

However, they don't believe it is the great white shark believed to have attacked the surfer - a 4.5-metre animal spotted by drone yesterday following the attack.

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The shark caught this morning has been tagged and towed out to sea.

The victim, a man in his 50s from Sydney's Northern Beaches, shouted out a warning to his mates moments before he was fatally bitten yesterday.

The NSW Department of Primary Industries dropped drum lines in the sea in a bid to hook the shark.

The fatal mauling came after a number of shark sightings in the area. They are believed to have been drawn to the waters by large numbers of bait fish coming near the shore.

The man was surfing with three friends at Tuncurry Beach in Forster just after 11am when he was attacked.

He was bitten in the upper thigh by the shark.

"When the attack occurred he did actually see the shark and called out to try and warn others," Police Superintendent Christopher Schilt said.

His friends brought him back to shore, but he went into cardiac arrest due to blood loss.

A retired paramedic who was on the beach began performing CPR until emergency services arrived.

"They lifted him up. They were probably in about waist-deep water, and he had horrific injuries," witness Michael Guest said yesterday.

"I really feel for those guys. They worked their backsides off to try and revive him."

A helicopter arrived on scene to transport him to hospital, but he died on the beach.

"Despite the best efforts of paramedics and bystanders at the scene, the man could not be resuscitated," NSW Ambulance said in a tweet.

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Authorities closed Tuncurry Beach and Forster Main Beach.

Two great white sharks, one measuring 4.5 metres, were spotted in the waters off the beach yesterday, and are believed to have been involved in the attack.

NSW Ambulance Inspector Joshua Smyth praised the actions of others who had been on the beach.

"Bystanders, including a retired paramedic, did a valiant job pulling the patient from the water and commencing CPR before paramedics arrived," he said.

"These people should be commended for their brave actions."

Police also commended the civilian responders, saying they had acted "fantastically" in tragic circumstances.