Malibu Pier had an unusual visitor this week when a hammerhead shark was spotted just below the surface. Fisherman Ariel Kohanchi, out around noon on Thursday, captured the moment on video, exclaiming "Hammerhead. Hammerhead. Hammerhead. Hammerhead" in disbelief. The shark circled, its fins occasionally breaching the water, as onlookers watched. While one angler briefly hooked the fish, the shark managed to spit out the bait.
Such a sighting near the Southern California coast is rare, with the iNaturalist species-sighting database indicating the last one was over a decade ago. Hammerhead sharks typically prefer warmer waters, but a confluence of factors has led to unusually warm ocean temperatures here. University of California San Diego Scripps Institution of Oceanography shark specialist Brendan Talwar pointed to late summer and early fall temperatures, a particularly strong El Niño cycle, and climate change as contributors. These conditions create an environment where warmer-water species, like hammerheads, are more likely to travel north. "It's uncommon but not impossible," Talwar said, adding that he would have "definitely said hammerheads" if asked to predict shark species to expect this summer.
Cal State Long Beach Shark Lab Director Chris Lowe predicts that with unseasonably warm weather and the start of an El Niño cycle, this sighting might just be the beginning of a "very sharky summer." Talwar called any hammerhead sighting "an amazing opportunity to be really excited about," emphasizing that hammerhead species worldwide face "extreme declines" due to overfishing. While their large fins are sought after in some parts of the world, these sharks do not fare well if accidentally caught and released.
The Smooth hammerhead is the species most commonly sighted, and Talwar describes them as "virtually harmless," though "sometimes curious" especially if people are fishing. Their distinctive hammer-shaped heads are not just for show; they contain electroreceptors that help the sharks find prey more effectively. Southern California has experienced hammerhead sightings during previous strong El Niño cycles. In 2015, an 8-foot hammerhead was briefly hooked by fishermen off Malibu Pier, prompting lifeguard warnings for kayakers, surfers, and paddlers. News accounts from that year also reported a kayaker bitten by a hammerhead and a 10-foot hammerhead encountered off Sunset Beach.
