Warnings after sharks spotted at three Auckland beaches

Aucklanders are urged to be cautious after sharks were spotted at three North Shore beaches on Friday.

Auckland Council reported the sightings at Long Bay, Waiake Bay and Browns Bay around 3pm on their Swimsafe website.

They issued 'sharks sighted, exercise caution' warnings for the beaches, although Rothesay Bay and the further southern beaches were not affected.

Surf Lifesavers currently patrol Long Bay between 12pm and 7pm but Waiake Bay and Browns Bay are not patrolled.

This comes after a 19-year-old woman was killed in what's thought to be a shark attack at Waihi Beach last week.

Kaelah Marlow was pulled from the water by emergency services on January 7, however she died at the scene.

Just a few days later, dozens of sharks were spotted in the shallows off Matarangi in the Coromandel.

Bronze-whalers were spotted in the shallows, while hammerhead sharks could also be seen in the crystal-clear water.

"When the water warms up you always see this big group of 50 or so bronze whalers just in the shallows at the end of the harbour entrance," Philip Hart, who captured the photos, told Newshub.

"It's unusual to see hammerheads but there were about half a dozen hammerheads further along the beach."