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Extremely Chill Hammerhead Shark Spotted In Newport
You're going to want to leave the sound on for the video above, and possibly fix yourself a mai tai while you watch this hammerhead shark groove along to some very chill tropical tunes.
Ryan Lawler, owner of Newport Coastal Adventure, shot the video last week, and told the O.C. Register, "I was just watching the shark swim...It was swimming without a care." So he set the soundtrack of the video to the 1959 steel guitar tune "Sleep Walk" by Santo & Johnny.
We find the video soothing, and very beautiful, and can't understand why Breitbart, of all places, would categorize this as "scary."
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However, there has been more of a presence of hammerhead attacks in Southern California recently; last September, a kayaker was bitten in Malibu. And in October, an 8-foot long hammerhead was spotted, also near the Newport Beach pier.
According to Lawler, ocean temperatures in Newport have been much warmer than they usually are in July, at an average 78.5 degrees. "That's for sure the warmest I've seen in July and maybe the warmest we've seen off Newport," he told the Register. "It's pretty mind-boggling." It's possible that the aftereffects of El Nino are still being felt, at least when it comes to water temperatures, which marine biologists say are linked to an increase in the presence of sharks.
Lawler said that the shark captured in the video wasn't even the only hammerhead he saw that day—he saw two on Thursday.
"They are definitely filtering in," he said. "It seems like they are coming back...I'm guessing August and September will hold a lot more hammerhead sightings."
Let's hope they are as laid-back as this one!
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