A SMALL shark was found barely alive in a freshwater roadside puddle at One Tree Hill — 20km from the ocean.

An amazed member of the public stumbled across the landlocked Port Jackson shark, at the intersection of Yorktown Rd and Black Top Rd, One Tree Hill, about 10.45am on Friday and reported the unusual catch to police.

“Despite being only partially submerged in the puddle, the shark, was still alive,’’ a police spokeswoman said.

Fauna Rescue SA went to the site and placed the shark in a container of water, the spokeswoman said.

However, the shark has since died, police say.

“How the shark came to be in the puddle is still a mystery, however, police have ruled out the possibility of a Sharknado (a 2013 sci-fi comedy-disaster film about a waterspout that lifted sharks out of the ocean and dropped them on land),’’ she said.

“It’s believed the shark may have been caught earlier today and dumped, or was kept as a pet but was growing too large for its tank.’’

Anybody with information about the puzzling find should contact Fauna Rescue SA or the police.