20.96 degrees Celsius! The average sea surface temperature sets a new record: it makes sharks more irritable.

CTOnews.com, August 5 (Xinhua)-- the European Union weather service Copernicus warned yesterday that the average sea surface temperature reached 20.96C, surpassing the record high of 20.95C set in 2016, and that warmer water could make sharks more irritable.

Image source: PxHere data show that the average sea temperature has been rising steadily since records began in the late 1970s. Thick lines are displayed in bright red and crimson shadows in 2023 and 2016, respectively. Other years are shown with thin lines.

Ocean warming not only affects fish and coral reefs and raises sea levels, but also causes fish such as cod to migrate northward to reach their preferred colder waters.

Dr Simon Boxall of the University of Southampton said rising ocean temperatures could also make predators such as sharks more aggressive. "Sharks are very sensitive to water temperature, so rising temperatures can make them grumpy," CTOnews.com translated.