El Nino may be driving stingrays onto California beaches

Stingray incidents have spiked on many beaches in southern California,

thanks to a marine heat wave that are drawing more rays, as well as

swimmers, to the shore.

Rays sting, as their name suggests, when they are stepped on, and

the pain can be severe.

"So this species of stingray is called a round stingray, and its way

of avoiding predators is burying in the sand," said researcher Professor Chris Lowe. 

"So you can't see them. So if you're out there jumping around,

playing in the surf and you step on one, they'll reflectively flick

their tail up and you get nailed."

Two state beaches near Hungtington Beach report more than 3,100

incidents so far this year, twice the number for all of 2025.

In June, officials confirmed the formation of an El Nino, the natural

warming of parts of the central Pacific that alters weather worldwide,

that is expected to grow to historic strength.