It seems like every year, there’s an increased number of shark sightings or reports on beaches<\/a> along the East and West Coast.\u00a0<\/p>\n Studies show the reason it feels that way is because it might actually be true.\u00a0<\/p>\n YOUNG GREAT WHITE SHARK PINGS OFF CANADA’S COAST AS HE HEADS TO SUMMER FEEDING GROUNDS<\/a><\/p>\n In an aerial view, a juvenile white shark swims in the clear, shallow water.\u00a0<\/p>\n (Kevin Carter\/Getty Images \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n According to NOAA<\/a>, more than 90% of the warming that has happened on Earth over the past 50 years has occurred in the ocean.\u00a0<\/p>\n When ocean waters warm, it causes a number of environmental concerns, and it can change the way certain animals behave.\u00a0<\/p>\n GREAT WHITE SHARK RIPPLE TRACKED OFF CANADA COAST AFTER TRAVELING 350 MILES IN A WEEK<\/a><\/p>\n Every year, sharks like great whites, migrate up and down the East and West Coast in search of cooler or warmer waters and more food.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sharks habituating on the East and Gulf Coasts migrate up into Cape Cod and Atlantic Canada<\/a> for the summer, as ocean temperatures become too warm for them to comfortably handle.<\/p>\n \u00a0In a rare underwater view, a great white shark was spotted swimming off Block Island in Rhode Island. The Atlantic Shark Institute said this may be the first instance of a white shark being photographed in Rhode Island waters.<\/p>\n Dr. Chris Lowe, professor of marine biology and director of the Shark Lab at California<\/a> State University in Long Beach, said white sharks in particular do not like water warmer than 82 degrees.\u00a0<\/p>\n “That tends to be a major break for them, and pushes them either deeper or further north,” Lowe said.\u00a0<\/p>\n So, when marine biologists note sharks in places where they are usually not much earlier or later in the year, it makes them wonder why.\u00a0<\/p>\n MASSIVE 1,400-POUND GREAT WHITE SHARK BRETON RAISES QUESTIONS AFTER IT PINGS OFF FLORIDA COAST<\/a><\/p>\n Breton the shark being released in 2020 after his evaluation and tagging.\u00a0<\/p>\n (OCEARCH \/ FOX Weather)<\/p>\n For example, Breton, a white shark tagged by OCEARCH in Sept. 2020, was pinged off the coast of Florida<\/a> in mid-July, while most sharks of his kind are hanging out much further north at this point in the year.\u00a0<\/p>\n At one of his most recent pings, water temperatures showed 87 degrees, OCEARCH found.\u00a0<\/p>\n SEE IT: RARE GREAT WHITE SHARK CAUGHT ON CAMERA IN THIS STATE’S WATERS FOR EXPECTED FIRST TIME<\/a><\/p>\n Breton’s latest ping on July 20, 2026 off the eastern coast of Florida.\u00a0<\/p>\n (OCEARCH \/ FOX Weather)<\/p>\n OCEARCH said the shark could be following food sources and because sharks can dive deep for long periods of time, Breton can handle it.\u00a0<\/p>\n “There’s going to be range extensions that we’re seeing where sharks aren’t normally seen because the waters are warming in different areas,” Joe Yaiullo, curator and co-founder of the Long Island Aquarium said. “They’re very adaptable, they’ve been around hundreds of millions of years.”\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/gettyimages-2059265284-scaled.jpg\")
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