"I think there are more sharks," stated Christopher Lowe, a professor at Cal State Long Beach and director of the university's Shark Lab. It's the first declaration by a prominent shark researcher that a recovery of the embattled apex predator seems to be occurring.

Lowe, who has performed extensive tagging of juvenile white sharks off Southern California and has pored over data dating back generations, said personal observations and increased incidental catch rates of small white sharks by commercial fishermen help support his contention. A longstanding statewide ban on fishing for white sharks, an increased survival rate among young white sharks because of fishing gear restrictions, and an expanding sea lion population as a prey source are chief reasons for the comeback.

Nursery
Southern California is a key nursery area for juvenile great whites, which feed on small fishes, rays and other sharks during the summer months. During autumn, adult great whites congregate near elephant seal rookeries off Central California, while a separate population gathers during the same period at remote Guadalupe Island west of Baja California.

According to the University of Florida's International Shark Attack File, there have been only eight fatalities attributed to white sharks off California since 1926, The last fatality involved an attack by an adult white shark on a swimmer off a northern San Diego County beach in April 2008.

While the prospect of great whites multiplying off the Golden State might trouble beachgoers, Lowe said he does not believe a growing population would result in more attacks on humans. "The fact that we see so few adult white sharks around populated areas tends to suggest that they don't want to be around places where people are," the scientist said.

"People aren't being bumped. People aren't being hit. My guess is that sharks are actually avoiding areas of high human population."