Balmoral swimmers and other harbour users can now receive real-time SharkSmart alerts when tagged white, tiger or bull sharks are detected nearby, after one of Sydney Harbour’s first two shark listening stations was installed near Balmoral in Middle Harbour.
Balmoral Shark Listening Station Adds Local Alerts
The Balmoral shark listening station sends an alert through the SharkSmart app when a tagged target shark passes within approximately 500 metres. SharkSmart also distributes tagged-shark detections through X.
White, tiger and bull sharks are the target species covered by the listening-station program. The alert system is specifically based on detections of tagged sharks within the station’s range.
A second harbour station has been installed at Lady Bay in the harbour’s east. Together, the Balmoral and Lady Bay installations are the first two Tagged Shark Listening Stations placed in Sydney Harbour.
The pair can provide information about tagged sharks moving into and out of the harbour. The program also includes research into bull shark movements and behaviour in Sydney Harbour and other estuaries.
Balmoral Buoy To Remain In Place
The buoy near Balmoral is visible from the shoreline and is intended to remain in place permanently. Its detections provide swimmers and other harbour users with additional information about tagged target sharks moving nearby.
The harbour installations expand an existing network of 37 tagged shark listening stations at ocean beaches across NSW. That coastal network stretches from Kingscliff to Merimbula, with at least one station in every coastal local government area.
The existing stations are tracking 1,698 white sharks, 938 tiger sharks and 374 bull sharks. Adding the two Sydney Harbour stations brings the statewide listening-station network to 39.
Part Of The Wider Shark Management Program
The listening stations form part of the NSW Shark Management Program, which also includes 305 SMART drumlines across 19 local government areas and 51 shark nets between Newcastle and Wollongong from 1 September 2026 to 31 March 2027.
Drone surveillance is another part of the program, with 73 drones operating across 97 beaches as expanded monitoring is rolled out.
Research under the program covers white, tiger and bull sharks, along with artificial intelligence, drone automation, personal and area-based shark deterrents and bite-resistant materials.
The program states that shark risk cannot be eliminated entirely. The Balmoral shark listening station adds real-time tagged-shark information through the SharkSmart app when a target shark is detected within approximately 500 metres.
Published 2-Septemberr-2026
