Locals were surprised to see a live mako shark wash up on Sumner Beach in Christchurch on Thursday night.
Video footage of the shark, described by a witness as "just under two metres" long, showed its jaws were still moving on the beach.
Department of Conservation Mahaanui operations manager Andy Thompson told the New Zealand Herald the stranding was a "sad but natural event".
"Mako sharks are not a protected species so DoC does not manage their population and is not mandated to respond to incidents like this," Thompson told the Herald.
"I just thought it’s not going to survive the night," Crates told Newstalk ZB.
She said a small crowd gathered where the shark was beached near Cave Rock about 20m from the water.
“A couple of people messaged me saying, ‘hey, look, we’ve buried it',” Crates told Newstalk ZB.
A police spokesperson said officers arrived at the beach about 8.30pm to make sure everyone was safe and referred the incident to DOC.
