Overview
- Video shot by fisherman Ari Kohanchi on Thursday showed a likely smooth hammerhead swimming close to Malibu Pier and the clip quickly went viral after one fisherman briefly hooked the animal.
- Marine scientists say unusually warm surface temperatures this season are the immediate cause for the shark’s appearance, with fishermen also reporting more barracuda and stingrays than usual.
- The National Weather Service updated this week that there is greater than a 90 percent chance of a very strong El Niño this fall and winter, which experts say raises the odds of more atypical marine arrivals.
- Researchers warn that northward shifts of warm‑water species can change prey distributions and increase risks such as harmful algal blooms, with likely effects on local fisheries and beach recreation.
- Similar movements occurred during the strong 2015 El Niño, and experts note hammerheads face global declines from fishing, making sightings both rare locally and scientifically important.