Surfers at Manhattan Beach were unknowingly sharing their morning session with a squad of juvenile great white sharks, gliding just inches beneath them, in a viral drone clip that hit social media on April 15. In the video, one young white shark slides directly under a paddleboard while another briefly pops toward the surface nearby, giving riders the kind of close call you feel in your stomach. The footage has ricocheted around the internet and put fresh focus on what locals say is an unusually early and active shark season.
Drone video from a local photographer
Manhattan Beach photographer Bo Bridges captured the dramatic sequence, which was later published by Surfer, showing multiple juvenile great whites weaving calmly through the surf lineup. The clip, shot from above, makes it painfully clear how close boards and sharks really are, even when no one in the water seems to notice.
The footage was posted on social media on April 15, according to the New York Post, and quickly fed into long-running local chatter about spring and summer turning into “white shark season” along this stretch of the Southern California coast.
Scientists link sightings to warm water
Dr. Chris Lowe, who heads Cal State Long Beach's Shark Lab, told Surfer, "We started seeing baby white sharks about four-and-a-half feet long about a month ago, which is really early." That timing has caught the attention of researchers who track when and where juvenile whites tend to show up each year.
Lowe and other scientists say that unusually warm coastal water, along with a possible El Niño, may be drawing pregnant females and their pups closer to shore earlier than usual. The Shark Lab's long-running tagging program and network of acoustic receivers are being used to track shifts in shark timing and distribution, essentially turning the coastline into a listening post for passing white sharks.
Similar sightings up and down the coast
Bridges' clip is not the only one raising eyebrows. Other ocean photographers and local outlets have shared similar drone shots in recent weeks, showing young white sharks cruising in shallow water near surfers and swimmers. Reporting indicates that nearshore encounters have been logged from Newport Beach to Hermosa, pointing to a wider pattern along the Southern California coast, according to The Inertia.
Observers say a mix of clear water and lingering warmth has turned these sharks into much easier sightings near popular breaks. The animals themselves, though, often appear to be doing little more than milling around and checking out the scenery.
State data and safety context
Despite the unsettling visuals, state officials stress that shark incidents remain uncommon. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife notes that since 1950, there have been fewer than 250 recorded shark incidents along the state’s coastline and fewer than 20 fatalities during that entire period, according to the department's white shark information page.
The agency encourages people to treat most encounters as exploratory “incidents” rather than outright predatory attacks and recommends basic common-sense precautions when going into the ocean, such as staying in groups, avoiding swimming near schools of baitfish, and paying attention to posted advisories.
How lifeguards and scientists monitor the water
To keep tabs on where juvenile white sharks are spending their time, Cal State Long Beach's Shark Lab operates a combination of tagging programs, acoustic receivers and an early-warning text system that can alert lifeguards when monitored sharks swim into designated zones. The program was detailed by the Long Beach Post, and is designed to give coastal agencies a better real-time picture of shark activity.
Officials also rely on drones and shared video, like the Manhattan Beach clip, to decide whether temporary ocean access pauses are needed at specific beaches. That can mean anything from brief advisories to short-term closures when sharks cluster very close to areas with heavy swimming and surfing.
What surfers should know
When he shared the viral footage, Bridges captioned it on Instagram with a simple, ominous line: "They're back!" His post, which can be seen on Bo Bridges' Instagram, summed up the feeling among many local observers who suspect this could be a busier than normal season for juvenile white shark sightings.
Scientists and state officials, however, continue to stress that the odds of a serious shark bite remain extremely low for most beachgoers, even when white sharks are present offshore. Their message is less about panic and more about perspective, with a reminder that routine beach-safety habits are still the best approach, even when the drone footage looks like a scene out of a summer thriller.
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