A teenager has been airlifted to hospital after being bitten by a shark in Far North Queensland .

The boy, believed to be in his mid-teens, was mauled on the stomach while swimming near Cook Esplanade on Thursday Island about 6.23pm on Saturday.

He was initially rushed to Thursday Island Hospital with significant abdominal injuries, before being airlifted in a life-threatening condition to Townsville University Hospital.

While shark attacks in the area are uncommon, Thursday Island and the surrounding Torres Strait have recorded fatal incidents in the past.

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