Wild drone video shows SoCal surfers paddling inches away from great white sharks
New York Post • • science
Key Points:
- Shark sightings along the Southern California coast are increasing, with recent drone footage showing a great white shark swimming just inches beneath a surfer at Manhattan Beach.
- Experts attribute the rise in shark activity to unusually warm ocean temperatures and a potential El Niño, which create favorable conditions for sharks to move closer to shore.
- Chris Lowe, director of the Shark Lab at Cal State Long Beach, noted that warmer waters may have prompted female sharks to return earlier to give birth, signaling a potentially "sharky summer."
- Despite the heightened presence of sharks, actual shark bite incidents remain very rare in California, averaging fewer than two per year statewide.
- Local authorities have temporarily restricted ocean access in some areas, such as Newport Beach, following recent shark sightings near surfers.
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