There was a recent shark sighting at Steamer Lane, Santa Cruz reported to the Shark Research Committee:

On March 20, 2007 Teresa Sullivan and her husband were observing surfers from shore near Steamer Lane in Santa Cruz. It was 4:00 P.M. with a slightly overcast sky, the remnants of a small storm that had moved through the area earlier in the day. There was a moderate swell with a light wind chop. A large kelp bed is near a rocky reef at this location. Sea lions were observed hauled out on a rock with several in the water, as well as an otter. Ms. Sullivan recalled:

"While watching the surfers, I saw a very large dorsal fin moving through the water. It was standing well over a foot out of the water. I was drawn to it because it had no curve like the dorsal fins I usually see from dolphins. It was also coming close to the surface, but not coming up for air like a dolphin. It was moving very smoothly through the water by the rock where all the sea lions were hauled out. It would swim straight about fifteen feet, disappear, then pop back up in the same spot and swim the same length. It looked kind of like it was doing small laps. It did this about five times. It came up so close to the surface that we could see the dorsal and tail fins come up out of the water. The really weird thing was that there were all these animals around, not to mention several dozen surfers, yet none of the animals seemed at all rattled. A couple of birds whipped out of the water, but there was no unusual behavior. I would expect to see a very quick mass exodus with a big shark nearby. The shark didn't visibly feed either."

Caution should be exercised when utilizing this location for your ocean water activities. Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.

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