Common name:
Scalloped hammerhead shark
Scientific name:
Sphyrna lewini
Spanish name:
Tiburón martillo
Conservation status:
Critically Endangered
Average lifespan:
20 - 30 years
Average size:
2.5 - 3 metres
Maximum size:
4.2 metres
Average weight:
80 - 100 kilograms
Maximum weight:
152 kilograms
The most common of the hammerhead sharks, scalloped hammerheads are a migratory species found in warm temperate and tropical waters of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans. They can be told apart from their close relatives by the ‘scalloped’ front edge of their hammer-shaped head (which is called the cephalofoil). The cephalofoil has evolved to improve vision and to provide a larger area for the electroreceptors that the sharks rely upon for hunting prey on or under the sediment.
The body is slender and is a brown-bronze colour on top and white below. The teeth are narrow backwards-facing triangles, perfect for seizing prey that they can eat whole rather than having to take bites out of larger prey. Their diet ranges from schooling fish such as sardines, herrings and mackerel, to stingrays, squid and even crustaceans.
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"Every year, globally, humans harvest 100 million individual sharks from our oceans."
The Galapagos Marine Reserve is home to the highest concentration of sharks in the world, and this project aims to protect sharks throughout their lifetimes from key threats such as overfishing.
Please help us conserve the endangered sharks of Galapagos by donating today or by adopting a hammerhead shark.
