Shark advisory lifted at Sunset Beach after fishermen catch young great white
Lifeguards lifted a shark advisory Wednesday afternoon along a stretch of Sunset Beach where a juvenile great white shark was reeled in by a group of fishermen Tuesday.
Huntington Beach lifeguards received a report at 2 p.m. Tuesday that anglers had unknowingly brought up a shark measuring 7 to 8 feet long while fishing on the shore near Eighth Street in Sunset Beach. The shark was briefly on the sand, but the fishermen dragged it back into the water and it swam away, said Marine Safety Lt. Eric Dieterman.
Lifeguards put up signs warning beachgoers that a shark had been seen in the area.
Shark sightings have become more common in recent years in Huntington Beach, according to lifeguards. Dieterman said they have logged six shark sightings in the past two months, though he said it could be the same shark coming back to feed.
Earlier this month, lifeguards issued a shark advisory after a fisherman hooked what appeared to be a juvenile great white off the end of the Huntington Beach Pier.
Juvenile sharks feed on fish and are unlikely to bite humans, scientists say.
A 2014 survey found there were about 2,400 great white sharks living in California waters, and Chris Lowe, head of the Shark Lab at Cal State Long Beach, said last year that he suspects that number has grown because of improved ocean-water quality and higher ocean temperatures.
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