The Hammerhead Shark

 Hammerhead Shark 

 

Diet

Hammerhead sharks are carnivorous animals and they eat a variety of animals. They will eat fish, crustaceans, and squid. Their favorite food is stingrays. They use enhanced sensory abilities to find stingrays who are buried in the sand. After they find them, they pin them down using their hammer-shaped head. Hammerheads prefer to hunt in shallow water. In 2005 scientists found out that the hammerheads there ate mostly squid, fish, and even moray eel in an area. 

Appearance

Hammerhead sharks are a grey-green to an olive color and they have white bellies. Their bellies allow them to blend in with the ocean's surface while hunting their prey. They have a small mouth compared to their body. Their teeth are in a zigzag form and they are very tiny. Hammerheads have their eyes at the edges of their face which allows them to see a 360 view. They have 5-gill slits. They can be from 3ft to 20ft.

Habitat

Hammerhead sharks live along the coastal lines and the continental plates. They are found only in oceans and they prefer warm water. Like most sealife hammerhead sharks migrate when the season changes, they migrate to the poles in the summer and near the equator in the winter. Hawaii, Costa Rica, and Southeast Africa are where high populations of hammerhead sharks are. Schools of hammerheads can have over one hundred individuals. Numerous of the schools are made of only female hammerhead sharks.

Reproduction

Hammerhead sharks only produce in the spring and summer. Their breeding season happens annually unlike other species of shark. When mating season happens males will bite the females until she allows him to mate with her. If the female doesn't like the male she can chase him away. This process of mating can take hours until the female submits to mate. These sharks have thick skin so when the male bites her it doesn't hurt, although older females can get scars from the bites. Hammerheads fertilize their eggs internally so their young are safe. They give birth after 10 to 12 months. Pup are born in shallow water and are like to take care of themselves, as they grow older and bigger they move to deeper water.

Thank you for reading, I hope you learned a lot about Hammerhead sharks and enjoyed reading it. You can ask questions about Hammerhead sharks in the comments. Go to my youtube channel to learn FUN FACTS about Hammerhead sharks.

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