Among the first notable exotic fish species encountered off Southern California this supercharged summer were yellowfin tuna and dorado, or mahi-mahi.
Then came hammerhead sharks, more commonly found in tropical waters, with several sightings having occurred during the past few weeks.
More recently, devil rays have entered the mix.
More precisely, spinetail devil rays, which are common off Mexico, including the Sea of Cortez, but exceedingly rare off Southern California.
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The accompanying footage is courtesy of Ryan Lawler, a prominent whale-watching captain.
Lawler stated Thursday via Instagram: "Yesterday was my first-ever encounter with this Southern California exotic: a 'spinetail
devil ray!' We saw perhaps a dozen scattered in the waters near the 9-mile bank" west of San Diego.
Carl Sbarounis, a spotter pilot, also shared footage of spinetail devil rays "on their way to dinner with their bowties!”
Sbarounis was referring to the dark bands across the devil rays’ heads.
According to the Manta Trust, spinetail devil rays (Mobula mobular) are common in tropical waters but occasionally “extend their range into warm temperate latitudes.”
Sea surface temperatures off Southern California have approached 80 degrees in some areas – significantly above average – in a phenomenon that many attribute to an intensifying "Super" El Niño at the equator.
Spinetail devil rays can measure 9 feet across and weigh 400-plus pounds.
On a depressing note, they're overfished throughout their habitat and are listed globally as "endangered" by the IUCN.
From the Manta Trust: "Given the growing demand in international trade for the dried gill platesof mobulids, spinetail devil rays have been greatly affected, and population declines have been documented throughout most of their range."
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Rare influx of devil rays appears underway off Southern California
