SYDNEY - A MAN spearfishing in South Australia was mauled in a shark attack on Sunday, officials said as a report warned of several sightings of the deadly predators in the area.

The 24-year-old was among a group in the water at Second Valley south of Adelaide when he was bitten, a spokesman for the South Australian Ambulance Service said.

'This guy was bitten rather savagely on the foot and also on the arm,' a witness told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

A number of sharks have been sighted in the area in the past three weeks, including one animal measuring nearly six metres (20 feet), the ABC said.

The shark responsible for the latest attack, which is not believed to be life-threatening, was two metres long, it said.

Sharks are a common feature of Australian waters. Last December, a snorkeller died after being attacked by a large shark off the Western Australian coast. More fortunate were a navy diver who was savaged in Sydney Harbour and a surfer attacked at Bondi Beach who survived their encounters. -- AFP