California’s beaches are getting an unusual summer visitor, and the reason may be floating just offshore. Juvenile great white sharks have been appearing in unusually high numbers along Southern and Central California, with sightings stretching from San Diego and Orange County toward Santa Barbara and Monterey Bay.
The activity started earlier than expected in 2026, with some young sharks arriving as early as February rather than waiting for the traditional spring peak. Drone footage and monitoring projects have captured juveniles cruising surprisingly close to surfers, paddleboarders and swimmers.
El Niño Is Expanding Their Playground
The big driver is heat. A marine heatwave that began in late 2025 has combined with a strengthening El Niño, pushing Pacific water temperatures higher and expanding the sharks’ preferred habitat northward.
Juvenile whites generally favor water roughly between 60 and 72-degrees Fahrenheit. When waters farther south become too warm, they can move into California’s cooler nearshore zones, where sandy bottoms also offer abundant prey such as stingrays, skates and small fish.
Researchers expect the unusually warm conditions to persist, particularly as forecasts point toward a potentially exceptionally strong El Niño peaking between October and December. That could keep sharks in California waters later than normal.
More Sharks, But Not Necessarily More Attacks
For beachgoers, the headline sounds more frightening than the actual statistics. Juvenile great whites generally target fish and rays rather than people, and experts say their growing presence does not automatically translate into more attacks…