Fact Sheet

Appearance:
Very large hammerhead shark. Anterior head margin nearly straight, with a median indentation. First dorsal fin very long, erect and falcate with the rear tip in front of the pelvic fin's origin. Second dorsal fin is high with a concave posterior margin. Falcate pelvic fins.

Coloration:
Bronze to grey-brown with white ventral surface. Adults have no markings on fins, while in juveniles the second dorsal fin tip is dusky colored.

Distribution:
Circumtropical. Western Atlantic: North Carolina to Brazil, Gulf of Mexico, Bahamas, Caribbean. Eastern Atlantic: Morocco, Senegal. Indo-West Pacific: East Coast of Africa (Natal to Mozambique). Red Sea, India, Thailand. Western Pacific: China, Taiwan, Australia, New Caledonia, French Polynesia. Eastern Pacific: Southern Baja California to Panama, Ecuador to northern Peru.

Biology:
Can be found close inshore and well offshore to depth of about 80m. This species favors coral reefs (continental and insular). It is a migrating species with some populations (off of Florida and China) moving poleward in the summer.

Feeding:
Fishes (big variety), sharks but strongly favors stingrays.

Size:
Average size between 400cm and 500cm, total maximum size about 610cm.

Reproduction:
Viviparous, with yolksac-placenta (gives birth to live young). Litter size between 12 and 40 pups. Size at birth between 50cm and 70cm. Gestation period at least 7 months. Males reach sexual maturity at 240cm to 270cm, female at 250cm to 300cm.

Similar species:
Scalloped hammerhead ( Sphyrna lewini ) and Smooth hammerhead ( Sphyrna zygaena ) but the Great hammerhead has a much higher first dorsal fin making mis-identification very unlikely.

Endangerment:
Unknown.