One of the most misunderstood but intriguing marine creatures is the hammerhead shark. These odd looking fish are often seen as scary, vicious creatures. In reality, most hammerheads are harmless. In addition, learning more about them can be truly fascinating. Check out these facts about hammerhead sharks to learn more about these intriguing creatures.
Facts About Hammerhead Sharks
Hammerhead sharks are long, slender sharks with distinctive heads
The head of the shark flairs out into a flat, horizontal hammer shape, giving the shark its name. The eyes of the shark are at the edges of these protrusions. Hammerheads are a light grey color and have white underbellies. They may also sometimes display a slight greenish hue. These sharks can grow to between three and 20 feet long, depending on the species, and can weigh between six and 1,300 pounds.
There are 9 species of hammerheads
Although most people think all hammerhead sharks are the same, there are actually nine different species. These species include the scalloped hammerhead, the bonnethead, the smalleye, the scoophead, the winghead shark and the great hammerhead. Each species has a different habitat and different temperament, and they display a wide range of sizes. However, all of these sharks share a very similar appearance.
Hammerheads are found around the world
Generally, they live around coastlines. Hammerheads prefer warmer waters, so they are more common in tropical or southern areas. Hammerheads often form large schools, sometimes of more than 100 individuals, during the day. However, at night, hammerheads separate and hunt by themselves.
They have a well-rounded diet
Hammerhead sharks are carnivorous, and eat a wide range of different fish, as well as other marine creatures such as squid or octopus. Many hammerheads eat sting rays as the main part of their diet. Some hammerheads will also eat other sharks, including other hammerheads, and may occasionally eat their own young. These sharks use their unique heads to stun or pin down their prey.
Hammerhead sharks can live to between 20 and 30 years old
These sharks breed once a year, usually producing 12 to 40 young sharks, depending on the species. These shark pups are immediately left to their own devices, but will travel together to find warmer, food rich waters. Most hammerheads mate to produce young, but it has been discovered that the bonnethead shark can actually reproduce asexually. This is the only shark species known to do this.
