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A spate of brazen Sydney shootings are linked to an increasingly deadly conflict over the city's drug trade, police say.

A high-level investigative unit has been formed to curb the violence after a man was fatally gunned down at southwest suburban Canterbury on Thursday morning, the fifth such victim in as many days.

Police Commissioner Karen Webb said the specialist task force would treat shootings over the past month as linked "until proven otherwise".

"We'll be throwing 100 extra police officers at this," she said.

"We're talking about 70 investigators dedicated to this task force and 30 additional proactive officers that will be patrolling the streets of southwest Sydney."

Thursday's attack appears to have been the breaking point for police, after the man in his 20s was shot dead on Broughton Street about 2am.

Police Minister Yasmin Catley said she was fed up with the violence.

"I've had a gutful," she said.

The unidentified man was found by officers with multiple gunshot wounds in an attack said to exhibit the hallmarks of an underworld hit.

He was treated by paramedics but died at the scene.

Assistant Commissioner Dave Hudson said the string of tit-for-tat shootings was linked to organised crime networks feuding over Sydney's lucrative illicit drug trade.

The conflict was playing out in the city's southwest with many of the hits outsourced to lower-level criminal groups, he said.

"It's escalated over the last several years,'' Mr Hudson said.

"Sydney's unfortunately one of the highest consumers of cocaine and methamphetamine in the world."

The ongoing gang war involves a number of families and has claimed at least 11 lives over recent years, prior to flaring again.

Task force Magnus will examine connections between the shootings dating back to Alen Moradian's murder in Bondi Junction in June.

Mr Hudson said the task force would engage with the "criminal environment" to establish leads.

"People know those people out there, someone knows the secret," Ms Webb said.

"They need to come forward ... people know what is going on."

She said the significant operational response was needed to protect the community.

"Public-place shootings are reckless and criminals carrying out such attacks show a blatant disregard for not only their own safety but that of the community," she said.

"Task force Magnus will provide investigating officers a full suite of capabilities and an arsenal of resources to not only find those responsible but end this brazen violence on our streets."

Mr Hudson said some of the best minds in policing had been hand-picked to lead the unit.

The Canterbury execution unfolded after two men had a verbal altercation with the victim. Police later found what they believe to be two burnt-out getaway cars.

The previous morning, high-profile criminal lawyer Mahmoud Abbas, 31, was critically wounded outside his Greenacre home.

He had represented several high-profile clients, including members of an alleged ISIS-inspired terror cell charged with plotting to destroy Sydney landmarks and controversial former Auburn deputy mayor Salim Mehajer.

On Sunday, three people were shot at Greenacre, leaving one 25-year-old man critically injured and a 22-year-old man and a 19-year-old woman injured.

The 25-year-old died on Thursday.

© AAP 2023

Honey produced by an Australian ant, well known to traditional owners, carries powerful medicinal properties that could be used to fight harmful bacteria and fungi.

The honeypot ant, found in the deserts of Western Australia and the Northern Territory, produces honey containing unique antimicrobial properties, according to researchers from Sydney University.

Of particular interest to researchers were a class of overfed ants "stuffed with nectar and sugary substances by other worker ants", causing their abdomens to inflate with honey, which they regurgitate when other food options are scarce.

First Nations people have used the crawling critters medicinally for thousands of years, as well as for a sweet treat.

"We use it for sore throats and sometimes as a topical ointment to help keep infections at bay," said Danny Ulrich, from the Tjupan language group.

The academics relied on Mr Ulrich and his family to source the ants.

"You wouldn't know they're there," he said.

"It's like a lot of bush foods in desert areas - unless you know they're there, you just walk right by."

Researchers have since confirmed the science behind its therapeutic use, finding the ants' honey to be effective against a potentially deadly bacterium commonly known as golden staph, and two species of fungi found in soil.

The staphylococcus aureus bacterium can cause infection, or in serious cases death, if it enters through a cut in the skin.

The aspergillus and cryptococcus fungi can also cause serious infection in people with suppressed immune systems.

Sydney University researcher Dr Kenya Fernandes said the ants' honey possesses distinctive qualities that set it apart from other types such as manuka honey, a well-established topical treatment for wounds and skin infections.

"This discovery means that honeypot ant honey could contain compounds with substantial antimicrobial power," she said.

"Identifying these could provide us with starting points for developing new and different types of antibiotics."

Professor Dee Carter, from the university's School of Life and Environmental Sciences and the Sydney Institute for Infectious Diseases, said the team is excited to apply the findings to medicine.

"Taking something that has been honed by evolution to work in nature and then applying this to human health is a great way to come up with therapeutic strategies," Prof Carter said.

Mr Ulrich and his family were happy to help this particular research group, but he has concerns about traditional medicines being commercialised.

"Honey ants are a resource that could very easily be over-exploited," he told AAP.

"If scientists want to get more samples they need to go to the local traditional owners, who have the knowledge of the area to go and collect them.

"Aboriginal people are not going to let them wipe out a whole nest area just for the sake of research, because we don't do that.

"We harvest sustainably and there's no way that would leave the colony short."

Mr Ulrich has never dug for honeypot ants himself because in Tjupan culture it's a role performed by women.

Aboriginal people have been eating the ants for thousands of years.

For a while Mr Ulrich's family was supplying honeypot ants to high-end Melbourne restaurant Attica, but problems transporting them from WA meant they are no longer on the menu.

He believes there is a delicate balance between sharing knowledge about traditional medicines and foods and appropriate commercialisation, which needs to ensure Aboriginal people benefit.

"There's a global push to eat insects - I saw a YouTube video with Angelina Jolie frying up tarantulas with her kids and munching away on them," Mr Ulrich said.

"But for us the honey ants are a sweet treat, it's not something we go and get all the time just for the sake of harvesting them."

© AAP 2023

Scientists hope to learn valuable information about whale genetics and behaviour after close to 100 animals perished in a stranding incident on a West Australian beach.

Fifty-two long-finned pilot whales initially died during a mass stranding event on Cheynes Beach, 60 kilometres east of Albany in the state's south.

On Wednesday night wildlife authorities made the difficult decision to euthanise the surviving 45 after failed attempts to return them to deeper water.

Incident controller Peter Hartley said the 350 people involved in helping the animals, including about 250 volunteers, did everything they could.

"We know whale strandings are a natural phenomenon. But we gave it a good go," Mr Hartley said.

"Spending the whole day in the water with those animals to give them the best opportunity.

"This is nature. It's a natural phenomenon we know very little about."

Mr Hartley said the decision to euthanise the remaining whales was probably one of the hardest in his 34 years in wildlife management.

He said a number of samples had been taken to check on the genetics of the animals, including whether or not they were all related.

Scientists from around the world had also been in contact to get access to the video of the stranding.

"Hopefully we get some really good learnings," he said.

The incident prompted a huge response from volunteers including those with small boats and surf skis joining the rescue.

The whale pod was first spotted swimming perilously close to the shore on Tuesday afternoon before a number began beaching themselves.

Wildlife experts speculated the unusual behaviour could be an indicator of stress or illness.

Macquarie University wildlife scientist Vanessa Pirotta said the reason the whales stranded themselves was a mystery.

"The fact they were in one area, very huddled and doing really interesting behaviours and looking around at times, suggests something else is going on that we just don't know," she told AAP.

A whale might have been sick or the pod might have become disorientated but it was unlikely they were trying to avoid predators, Dr Pirotta said.

Mr Hartley thanked all those who took part in the attempts to save the whales, despite the tragic result.

"What I did observe yesterday was the very best of humanity," he said.

"I just want to acknowledge and thank everyone who responded to that incident. Their efforts were enormous, the conditions were trying and the water was cold."

© AAP 2023