Lifeguards posted a warning sign over the weekend after a shark was reportedly seen near Carpinteria City Beach in California.
What happened?
A precautionary advisory was issued after a shark was spotted around 4 p.m. Saturday in open water off Holly Avenue near Lifeguard Tower 2.
The sign stayed up from July 25 to July 27 as a safety measure for swimmers and surfers.
According to Coastal View News, officials said the shark was seen offshore near the buoy line between Ash Avenue and Holly Avenue, and its species was not identified.
Public information officer and emergency manager Juliza Briones said the animal did not behave aggressively.
Jeanette Gant, director of the city's Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department, said, "Sharks are in our waters year-round, so this sighting is not uncommon."
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Why does it matter?
Juvenile white sharks have been monitored in the region for years, including near Padaro Beach.
Felicity Eriksson, a graduate student and education coordinator at California State University Long Beach's Shark Lab, said, "This summer with warmer water temperatures has been driving an increase of sharks seen, especially for our juvenile white sharks!"
Human-driven warming is altering seas in ways that can increase overlap between people and wildlife, while heavy recreational use of beaches raises the odds that sightings will be noticed.
What's being done?
The advisory remained posted for 72 hours, and the city urged visitors to follow lifeguard instructions.
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Researchers are also studying juvenile white sharks.
Eriksson said the Shark Lab tracks them along the Southern California coast, where several sharks can remain gathered in one area for extended periods. Watching those patterns can help experts better understand when and where sharks are most likely to appear close to shore.
"We believe the mothers drop off their babies during the springtime before heading towards central California," Eriksson said. "To be clear, no one really knows where white sharks give birth, however, all of Southern California is a nursery habitat for the juveniles."
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