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Shark Sighting at Ocean Beach on Wednesday, July 20, 2011

matt — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 00:10:45 +0000

On July 20, 2011, Myung Kil was surfing at Ocean Beach, San Francisco, almost opposite Beach Chalet. It was about 8:30 AM and he had been on the water 45 minutes. The sky was clear with air and water temperatures estimated in the low 60s and 50s Fahrenheit, respectively. The ocean was calm with decent swells for good small to midsized surf. No marine mammals were observed in the area. Kil reported: “I was waiting on my board for a set, looking outbound when slightly to my left, perhaps 10 o’clock and about 25 yards away, I saw a fairly large triangle fin a good foot to foot and a half and part of the sharks brownish back exposed from the trough of an incoming swell. It was moving perpendicular to me, cruised under the incoming swell and disappeared. I don’t recall much water thrashing when the shark broke the surface. I’d seen birds dive into the ocean for baitfish previously. I waited for seconds, registering that I had seen a shark, looked at the other surfers around me then saw a decent wave to catch back to shore perhaps minutes later. The shark had a very large dorsal fin, light and water shimmered on the back end of the shark, which was visible slightly out of the swell for a moment. In the light, and water, the shark looked brownish and I would guess 8 feet in length from my perspective.”

Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.

Photo by jutecht via flickr.

Sharktober Film Fest in San Francisco on Saturday, October 17, 2009

matt — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 21:49:49 +0000

San Francisco’s Aquarium of the Bay (Pier 39) holds the Sharktober Film Festival on Sat., Oct. 17 from 1:00 to 5:00 PM. The films include local and international entries. The event is sponsored by the San Francisco Ocean Film Festival and Sea Stewards from Aquarium of the Bay.

Following the screenings, renowned shark experts and scientists will share their insight during presentations and panel discussions moderated by filmmaker and marine biologist David McGuire.

The event ticket is priced at $17.

Shark Sightings Close Stinson Beach in Marin on Tuesday, August 11, 2009

matt — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 21:53:08 +0000

Due to two “reliable” shark sightings on Mon., Aug. 10, officials of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area have closed Stinson Beach (Marin Co.) for at least five days, starting on Tues., Aug. 11.

For more information, visit CBS5.com.

Photo credit: Stormydog

Shark Attack at San Onofre on Saturday, July 11, 2009

matt — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 10:46:24 +0000

After numerous sightings of one or more great white sharks in the past few weeks at San Onofre State Beach, a surfer was attacked on Sat., July 11. The following report was provided to SurfPulse by the Shark Research Committee:

San Onofre State Beach — On July 11, 2009 Brian Hovnanian and companion Lance E. were Stand Up Paddleboarding at the reef south of Dog Patch, San Onofre State Beach. It was 8:30 AM and they had been on the water 1.5 hours. It was sunny with little or no wind and an air temperature in the low 70s Fahrenheit. The ocean was calm and glassy with water visibility 4–5 feet and a temperature in the upper 60s Fahrenheit. They were about 50 yards from shore over water about 6 feet deep with a sandy, rocky bottom. No marine mammals were observed in the area. Hovnanian reported: “I was paddle surfing at the reef south of Dog Patch, with one other paddle surfer, Lance E. I have had many shark sightings of 5′ to 6′ sharks jumping all of the way out of the water at this same place for the last two months, as I paddle surf there a couple times a week. I had not seen any today and did not see this one coming. We both had just ridden waves in from a nice set. As I was paddling out, my friend was paddling about 30 feet behind me when all of a sudden it felt like something hit the back of my SUP, then slammed into the back of my left calf, forcing me to lose my balance and I fell backwards. The shark was now on top of my SUP and I was lying backwards on top of the shark, as it was on my board. The shark slithered off the board back into the water. This all happened so fast, and I believe when I fell on the shark, it scared it and it tried to get away from the board and me. I still had my paddle in my hand, jumped to my feet on my board and looked at my leg, to notice nothing had happened to my body or board. By now my friend had paddled quickly to me and could not believe what he had just seen right in front of him. He made sure I was OK; luckily I was, then we paddled back out to the line-up and caught a wave from the next set and paddled in thinking how lucky I was. I’m not sure what kind of shark it was, but it did have a gray back and white underside and was about 5 feet in length. It might have been a Mako or White Shark.”

By definition an unprovoked shark attack is “any physical contact between a shark and human, or piece of equipment being utilized by a human, without any known provocative action by the subject which might cause the shark to strike out.” This is the second authenticated unprovoked shark attack for 2009 from the Pacific Coast of North America. Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.

Shark Sighting in Pacifica on Saturday, June 27, 2009

matt — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 23:16:34 +0000

The following report of a shark sighting at Linda Mar in Pacifica is courtesy of the Shark Research Committee:

Linda Mar Beach — On June 27, 2009, Zack Ehrlich was surfing at Linda Mar Beach, Pacifica by Crespi. It was 12:45 PM under a sunny sky with a temperature of about 70 degrees Fahrenheit. He was about 100 yards from shore. Ehrlich reported the following: “No other marine mammals were observed in the area. The seal was already dead when I saw the shark 15 minutes later. Did not look like a dolphin fin or a live seal. I was about 30 or 40 yards away from it. I saw the tip of a dorsal fin scrape through the water. The shark seemed to be feeding upon the dead seal carcass I saw earlier.”

Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.

Shark Encounter in Santa Cruz on Thursday, April 30, 2009

matt — Tue, 05 May 2009 13:54:19 +0000

On April 30, 2009, Scott Tapley was paddling at Soquel Cove, Santa Cruz. It was 10:00 AM and he had been on the water about 45 minutes. Air and water temperatures were estimated in the mid-50s Fahrenheit. The sky was clear and the ocean glassy with about four feet of water visibility. There were numerous birds in the area as well as two pinnipeds.

Tapley reported: “I was paddling from the Cement Ship to Pleasure Point and back. On the return trip, I was on a line between Pleasure Point and the Cement Ship, in Soquel Cove, about one mile from the Cement Ship and about a mile or less from Pot Belly Beach. The shark was swimming directly at me when I first saw it. At first I thought it might be an Orca, so I paused to let it get closer. When it was about 20 or 30 feet in front of me, the shark turned off about 45 degrees and I could see it better. It was a large gray shark, maybe 15+ feet, with 18–20 inches of dorsal fin exposed above surface. It was swimming slowly before submerging. It appeared to roll on its side briefly before submerging. It seemed to be coming right toward me and then veered off. I paddled hard for land looking back a few times but didn’t see it again.”

Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.

Orca Sightings off SF and HMB on March 7 & 13, 2009

matt — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 15:33:41 +0000

Two separate orca (killer whale) pods have been sighted in the past week, off of Half Moon Bay and in the Gulf of the Farallones. Both pods are usually located in the Puget Sound of Washington State. It is unusual to see orcas in this area, and experts believe they have traveled south in search of feeding grounds (these orcas mostly feed on salmon).

Hopefully, the orcas will scare off the great white sharks for a spell and those waves on the Farallones (see The Surfer’s Journal, Vol. 17, No. 4) can finally be surfed.

For more information, photos, and video, visit http://abclocal.go.com.

Shark Attack in Marin County on Saturday, December 20, 2008

matt — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 17:34:56 +0000

The following report of a Great White Shark attack was provided by the Shark Research Committee:

Dillon Beach — On December 20, 2008, Tony Johnson reported the following:

“Lucy, Anders, Cristina, Bill, Gordon, Jonathan and I were returning from a beautiful day of paddling. We were all gathered just south of Tamales Head in front of Dillon Beach. The group was deciding on surfing options when I asked Lucy if she wouldn’t mind if I went in. While going in I remember trying to make a conscious effort to use proper torso rotation and form while using my Greenland paddle. When half-way through my right stroke, a Great White Shark, with a girth larger than the width of my 22-inch kayak, hit my paddle from behind with such force that it slammed me forward to the front of my deck. Feeling the turbulence on my boat I sat up in shock at the speed, power, and size of this creature. I wish there were some way I could relate, or explain, how fast this creature was in water. I was facing the beach with my paddle out of the water, holding it in preparation for a second hit and saying to myself, ‘stay frosty.’ I was afraid to move and started yelling to my group that was behind me, ‘Great White’ – ‘Great White.’ I did this for several seconds before I decided to turn the boat around and head for the group. I stayed very still and slowly extended my paddle to turn towards the group. While turning the boat I looked to my right and there, 15–20 feet away, was the Great White, its dorsal fin out of the water. Its dorsal fin was large and shredded at the tip. The Great White was moving slowly, turning with my boat, this really caused me to panic and I paddled as fast as I could to the group yelling ‘Great White’ many times until someone heard me. We all gathered together and paddled in to Dillon Beach. While on the beach I examined the paddle and there were no bite marks, which I can’t explain.”

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.

Shark Sighting at Ocean Beach on Sunday, November 16, 2008

matt — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 03:22:28 +0000

The following report was provided by the Shark Research Committee:

On November 16, 2008, Ben B., and his friend Alex, were surfing the north end of Ocean Beach, San Francisco. They had started their first session at 9:30 AM, winding up at 11:45 AM when they headed to the beach for a few minutes of rest. They decided to have one more short session and returned to the water. They were 100–125 meters from the beach at high tide. They had been in the water about five minutes when Busse reported:

“Alex paddled up to me and said, ‘I just saw a fin moving slowly, and directly toward us from beyond the lineup, maybe 25 meters out…it could be a shark.’ He said the fin appeared very briefly, maybe five seconds, then it disappeared. He estimated the height of the dorsal fin to be at least 12 inches. He also saw part of the body around the dorsal fin and said ‘whatever it was, it had a very wide body and looks larger than anything I’ve seen out here…it could be a shark.’ About two minutes later, Alex saw the fin again and this time he went ashore. About three minutes after Alex had gone in, I saw the dorsal fin moving slowly diagonally, northeast toward the beach. The fin was at least 12 inches tall and moved horizontally at the surface. It did not act like a dolphin. After a few seconds the fin disappeared beneath the surface and I headed toward the beach.”

Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.

Shark Sighting in Pacifica on Monday, October 6, 2008

matt — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 19:12:44 +0000

The following report from the Shark Research Committee provides information that points to a sub-adult white shark as the possible culprit:

On October 6, 2008, Jon D. was surfing at Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica (between San Francisco and Half Moon Bay). He reported the following:

“I was surfing Linda Mar on the North end at around 9:30 AM last Monday. The surf was about 3–5 feet on the sets and conditions were not ideal, by that I mean junky barely fun. As I was keeping my eyes on the outside for potential sets, I saw what appeared to be a large fish breach at least 300–400 yards out, maybe as far out as the point on the south side of the beach, and in front of the bathrooms. I would guess the fish was 10–12 feet in length. I’ve been surfing for ten years in the area and have seen hundreds of dolphins and whales. From my experience, you can usually see these mammals resurface. However, in this case, it was a one time event. When it jumped, it went straight up, twisted a little, and landed on its tail and side. Its back appeared to be almost black, but as it twisted around 180 degrees, its underbelly was bright white. I couldn’t tell if it was feeding on something because it occurred so far out.”

Please report any shark sighting, encounter, or attack to the Shark Research Committee.