南加州沿海地区因海洋热浪导致黄貂鱼大量靠岸，引发海滩刺伤事件显著增加。[1]玻尔萨奇卡州立海滩和亨廷顿州立海滩今年合计报告超过3,100起刺伤事件，较去年全年增长一倍。[1]其中亨廷顿海滩3.5英里的海岸线单独报告超过2,000起事件，已超过去年全年数字。[1]圣地亚哥海滩在2026年上半年也记录超过900起刺伤事件，远超过去五年同期数据。[1]
加州州立大学长滩分校海洋生物学教授克里斯·洛瑞解释了这一现象的成因，指出黄貂鱼"真的是一个亚热带物种，因气候变化在其分布范围的边界处繁荣"。[1]整个冬季期间，海洋温度持续维持在60度以上，为黄貂鱼提供了舒适的生存环境。[1]终身卫队每年通常可以处理约10,000起黄貂鱼刺伤事件。[1]
A warming ocean is bringing stingrays closer to Southern California's shores in unprecedented numbers, triggering a sharp spike in beach injuries. Bolsa Chica and Huntington State Beaches have reported more than 3,100 stingray injuries combined this year, double the total from the previous year [1]. Along a 3.5-mile stretch of Huntington Beach alone, more than 2,000 incidents have been recorded this year, surpassing the entire previous year's count [1]. San Diego beaches have experienced similar impacts, with more than 900 stingray injuries documented in the first half of 2026, exceeding the same period over the previous five years [1].
Marine biologists attribute the surge to persistently warm ocean conditions fueling the northward expansion of the species. Ocean temperatures have remained above 60 degrees throughout the winter [1]. Chris Lowe, a marine biology professor at California State University, Long Beach, explained that stingrays are fundamentally subtropical creatures thriving at the edge of their geographic range due to climate change [1]. Lifeguard services across California handle approximately 10,000 stingray injuries annually [1], but this year's numbers indicate a dramatic acceleration in incidents along the region's most popular beaches.