A shark breached from the surf directly behind a woman posing for photos at Marina State Beach on Saturday, and the moment was captured on video that has since spread across social media. California State Parks confirmed a shark breach near the beach around the same time, though officials say they cannot confirm it was the same animal caught on camera in the viral clip.
Erin King, who was born and raised in the Salinas Valley, was the one filmed in the video, according to KSBW. King had been taking photos for a group of sisters she'd just met on the beach, and the sisters insisted on returning the favor by photographing her — catching the shark mid-leap in the background as they filmed. The station reports the breach behind King was seen at around 12:30 p.m. Saturday, while State Parks cameras separately recorded a breach at about 12:26 p.m. the same day. Officials have said they cannot confirm whether the shark in King's video is the one their cameras picked up.
State Parks Issues Advisory, Posts Signs
State Parks issued a shark advisory for Marina State Beach because of the recent activity, the station's report notes. A post in the r/MontereyBay subreddit, titled “State Parks Confirms: Shark Breached Off Marina,” adds that the video was recorded near The Sanctuary Beach Resort in Marina, and that state park staff reviewed Surfline camera footage from that location, which reportedly captured a shark breaching at the time the viral video was recorded. The same post states that shark advisory signs were to go up immediately following the confirmed breach.
Possible Great White Shark Breaching at Marina State Beach
The species of shark in the beach video has not been confirmed, but per the same Reddit account, State Parks said its behavior does appear to match that of great white sharks. Officials noted that sharks commonly migrate to the Central Coast during fall and winter, a seasonal pattern that lines up with the timing of this weekend's sighting.
Part of a Bigger Pattern Along the California Coast
The Marina encounter comes amid a broader run of shark activity up and down the California coastline this year. In Southern California, an “aggressive” great white shark estimated at 10 to 12 feet was spotted near Lifeguard Tower 16 at Huntington Beach, according to the Los Angeles Times. A foilboard surfer there reported seeing the shark circling roughly 300 feet offshore around 3 p.m. and was not injured. The Times reports that shark sightings at Southern California beaches have surged this year, with experts attributing the uptick to El Niño and warmer ocean waters.
That warming trend was flagged earlier in the year, too. The Los Angeles Times reported that sightings had already surged during an unusually warm spring, with experts predicting a sharky summer ahead, and USA Today noted that California wildlife officials said the warmer waters tied to the 2026 El Niño pattern could bring great white sharks closer to the Southern California coast. In late July, Soren Stevenson filmed a white shark jumping out of the water behind his brother-in-law as he surfed at Newport Beach, telling the outlet he didn't even notice the shark until he reviewed the footage later. A marine biology professor said the juvenile shark was likely breaching to scratch an itch, or just for fun.
Why Sightings Don't Necessarily Mean Danger
Despite the flurry of close encounters, researchers say more sightings don't equate to more risk. According to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, white sharks are among the largest sharks found in Monterey Bay and function as apex predators that help keep ocean ecosystems healthy. California's white shark population is estimated at roughly 300 individuals and is considered stable, the aquarium says, with many adult sharks migrating far offshore in spring and summer before returning to coastal feeding grounds near Monterey Bay and the Farallon Islands in late summer and fall.
Further south, the Cal State Long Beach Shark Lab has tagged 390 sharks since 2010, with about 233 still active in its tracking system, the Los Angeles Times reported. Researchers at two California shark congregation sites found that humans and sharks were swimming together 97% of the time without incident, and juvenile great whites near Southern California generally don't view people as food — which the Times noted is part of why they tend to simply ignore swimmers nearby.
For now, King's video stands as the latest reminder that the Central Coast's seasonal shark migration is underway, even as the exact identity of the animal behind her remains unconfirmed.
