A sign warning beachgoers about shark activity is posted at the top of the trail leading down to Beacon's Beach in Leucadia in 2019 in Encinitas, California. - Hayne Palmour IV/Los Angeles Times/Hayne Palmour IV/San Diego Union-Tribune
How common are encounters between sharks and humans off California’s coast? According to new research conducted by California State University, Long Beach’s Shark Lab, there’s a surprisingly high amount of overlap between the places people and sharks hang out. The research team — led by Chris Lowe, professor of marine biology at CSU Long Beach — used drones to document human water activity and shark distribution. Researchers conducted more than 1,500 drone surveys from 2019 to 2021 across 26 different southern California beaches — going as far north as Santa Barbara and as far south as San Die...
