Shark Sightings in San Diego Surf

written by Morgan Wood

On Wednesday, August 31st, a picture of a "big sea creature" was taken at Swamis in San Diego, California. The picture, compounded by recent shark sightings in La Jolla and Mission Beach, has caused quite a stir.

Surfers, more concerned with the oncoming set than the shadowy figure in the wave, did not report seeing a shark in the water. Photo: Gary Elliot

SAN DIEGO, California - Screaming “shark!” in the water is like yelling “fire!” in a movie theater, you just don’t do it unless you are sure of what you are seeing. Even then, screaming may not be as appropriate a reaction as paddling to shore.

But in the blood rush of heightened awareness, our natural fight or flight reaction kicks in and what may be, in reality, a benign fish (let’s just say Pacific Bluefin tuna for example) becomes the white-bellied, saw-toothed monster himself.

In the past three weeks there have been three shark sightings off the coast of San Diego, two in Mission Beach and one in La Jolla, and then the photo above surfaced last Wednesday.

The photo was taken by Gary Elliot who says with amazing accuracy, “It looks pretty clear to me that there’s a big sea creature right there.”

Sharks are known to swim the waters off the San Diego coastline and white sharks, especially adolescents, have been spotted as early as May. But does that warrant a frenzied panic by local media? When panic does hit, especially in the water, sometimes it helps to put things in perspective.

Comparison stats like coconut deaths per year could be inserted here, as per usual in shark-related stories, but the widely quoted and misused statistic of 150 coconut-attributed fatalities per year is grossly overstated, as Cecil Adams over at The Straight Dope astutely points out.

It is far easier to ask yourself a simple question; how many people do you know, personally, that have been attacked by a shark?

While attacks are extremely serious and should never be taken lightly, it is reasonable to assume that more people are involved in car accidents than shark attacks. Yes, not all drivers surf but almost all surfers have driven in a car at least once in their lives.

Now, if Peter Benchley had chosen to write about a blood-thirsty 1974 VW Beetle instead of a vicious white shark, Spielberg’s Jaws may have incited more fear in drivers than surfers. But that wasn’t (and isn’t) the case, so our fears will continue to wrestle with our logic.

While the jury is out (unless you’re CBS 8 – San Diego) on exactly what this “sea creature” was, the recent sightings did not deter surfers from enjoying some of the best waves of the season this past weekend.

It’s going to take more than a handful of white sharks to scare away stand up paddlers and surfers from near-perfect waves.

What's scarier, a 1974 VW Beetle or a great white shark?

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