Frenchman Yves Berthelot was swimming just metres from a catamaran when he was attacked and bitten multiple times by a bull shark, reports have confirmed.
Yves, 50, was snorkelling with friends and his wife, Anne, just metres from the shore when he was attacked - and despite desperate attempts to revive him, he lost his life at the scene.
New Caledonia is an island off the East coast of Australia, and is popular with divers and snorkellers due to its beautiful beaches and crystal clear water.
A friend posted a touching tribute to the Frenchman on Facebook, who was a keen traveller.
‘We have lost a friend, a brother. Even though he was thousands of kilometres away from us we were close and we love him’ she wrote.
‘Yesterday he went in a terrible way. Our thoughts turn to Anne, Sophie, Alice and Mano. All out condolences are with the family.’
Bull sharks are renowned for their aggressive nature, and are thought to be responsible for the vast majority of near-shore shark attacks. They have the ability to thrive in both saltwater and freshwater and are often found travelling up river.
However it is worth noting that worldwide there are only on average 75 shark attacks per year, with the number of fatalities averaging 1-2 per year.
In contrast it's thought that up to 100million sharks are killed by humans every year.
In 2014, the Australian government provoked international outrage by introducing a shark cull - killing 50 in an attempt to protect swimmers. During this time 75% of sharks caught were under the three metre target size, and several smaller ones died on hooks.
No great white sharks, one of the three species responsible for human attacks, were caught during the cull.