After a dead whale washed up at a Perth beach, some took selfies. Others held their nose from the stench

Multiple sharks have been spotted swimming near a large, smelly whale carcass that has washed ashore at a popular capital city beach, drawing hundreds of onlookers.

Surf lifesavers found the dead animal at Perth’s City beach at about 7.30am on Monday and raised the alarm.

Local authorities closed the beach for several kilometres in each direction of the carcass, which appeared to be about six metres long.

Multiple sharks have been spotted in the area, including a five-metre great white.

“It is possible the carcass will continue to act as an attractant that could lead to sharks coming in close to shore along this stretch of coast,” the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development warned.

“People should exercise additional caution.”

The alerts come 10 days after 63-year-old Greg O’Neill was killed in a shark attack while swimming close to shore at Perth’s Sorrento beach, about 12km north of City beach.

Hundreds of onlookers gathered on Monday to view the whale.

“It’s sad, they’re such a beautiful animal,” a local, David Jones, said. Several dead whales had washed up on the same stretch of coast in the previous decade, he said.

Many onlookers took selfies in front of the massive carcass, while others held their noses to protect themselves from the stench.

The silhouettes of sharks could be seen in the waves, swimming up and down the coast.

Town of Cambridge mayor, Gary Mack, said it was important members of the public took heed of the warnings.

“This is not a time for taking risks,” he said.

Mack said authorities were assessing the carcass and it was likely to be removed from the beach on Tuesday.

“It seems at this stage the plan will be to remove the carcass on the back of a truck and take it to a landfill site,” he said.

The other option is to tow it out to sea, but Mack said that may prove difficult.

“There’s a bit of surf down there, and it’s rocking back and forth and appears to be wedged on the sandbar,” he said.