A Very Sharky Summer Could Be Ahead For The U.S.

Shark sightings are on the rise as the “Super” El Niño brings in warmer water, as scientists warn Americans about their next trip to the beach. 

Scientists are predicting a 63% chance of a “Super El Niño” this year, a nickname for very strong weather events, which can result in temperatures in the Pacific Ocean increasing by at least 2℃ above average. This year could bring in the strongest El Niño on record.

With these weather shifts driving warmer water “deeper and faster” than before, sharks will move closer to shore. 

“Scientists are issuing a warning that California will see an exponential increase in sharks with intensely warming waters fueled by El Niño,” ABC News said.  

Dr. Chris Lowe, director of the Shark Lab at California State University, Long Beach, said that Southern California in particular will see a drastic uptick, having “double the sharks” than in a normal year, according to ABC News. 

Sharks can also appear in areas where they wouldn’t typically go, according to Lowe. 

“During strong El Niños, like the one that’s being predicted, we get tiger sharks, bull sharks, whale sharks, manta rays and even hammerheads,” Lowe said. “We have all these species that we don’t normally get.”

The El Niño is a weather phenomenon occurring when the temperature in the equatorial Pacific is 0.5℃ above average for several consecutive months, coupled with a disruption of an atmospheric pattern called the Walker Circulation.

These weather changes have global impacts, altering clouds, jet streams, air pressure, and storms. It also makes dry places wetter, and wet places drier, intensifying in the fall and culminating in the winter. The most recent El Niño, one of the five strongest on record, caused high global temperatures, severe droughts, and intense cyclones.

During the last El Niño ending in May 2024, Southern California saw 20 to 25 juvenile great white sharks, which can reach up to nine feet long. Scientists predict Southern California could see just as many great whites again this year. These sharks can also be as close to the shore as waist-deep water.

The 2015 El Niño, equivalent to the “record-strong events of 1982 and 1997-98,” resulted in 98 unprovoked shark attacks globally, a record high event. 

Australia has already seen four fatal shark attacks this year, and a great white shark was spotted in the Mediterranean, which is unusual.

On June 8, a Navy base employee was injured in a shark attack in Panama City, Florida. 

With the anticipated increase in shark sightings, Lowe said people should be vigilant, not fearful.

“We know there’s safety in numbers,” Lowe said. “Statistically, it is very rare for somebody to be bitten if they’re in a group, but they’re more likely to be bitten if they’re by themselves.” 

Being aware of your surroundings, where you are swimming, and not swimming near a shark’s prey are further ways to ensure safety. 

Since it is more likely to be killed by a cow, vending machine, or champagne cork, swimmers should be aware in the water and not do anything foolish like the infamous shark riders. Sharks kill fewer than 10 people a year, while people kill on average 100 million sharks annually. 

Sharks are also just not that interested in humans. Lowe said that the most recent data in California shows great white sharks are “around people all the time, people just don’t know they’re there.” 

​​”Using drone footage, we see sharks swimming right by people and not even changing their path,” Lowe said. “They’re completely ignoring people.”