Hammerhead Shark's Diet

Hammerhead sharks, or Sphyrnidae sphyrna, are found all over the world in the deepest parts of the ocean, usually far away from land. They are grayish in color, sometimes appearing to have a green tint, with a white underbelly. The most identifiable feature of the hammerhead is its elongated head which allows its eyes to be set wide apart for a better range of vision than other sharks. This oddly-shaped head is also where a grouping of sensory organs is located. These organs allow the hammerhead sharks to sense electrical currents in the water given off by other animals, including their prey.

  1. Ampullae of Lorenzini

    • Unlike other sharks, hammerheads have sensory organs in their elongated heads in order to detect their prey.

      The hammerhead uses a grouping of sensory organs called the ampullae of Lorenzini to detect electrical currents emitted by their prey. Once the shark has detected an electrical field, it knows where the prey is located and can swim to find it.

    Diet

    • Hammerheads eat fish, shrimp, octopuses, squid, and sting rays.

      Hammerhead sharks have relatively small mouths compared to other shark species. Because of this, and their small body size, hammerheads usually eat smaller prey such as fish, shrimp, octopuses, squid, skate, cephalopods, and sting rays.

    Fish

    • Hammerhead sharks often detect large schools of fish and attack them.

      The hammerhead shark can detect large schools of fish due to the electrical currents they put out into the ocean water. Hammerheads often feed on fish such as mackerel, sardines, menhaden, and herring. Hammerheads often congregate in groups of up to 100 individuals and can attack large schools of fish together.

    Sting Rays

    • The hammerhead's most common source of food is the sting ray.

      The hammerhead shark's preferred source of food is sting rays. Sting rays often bury themselves in the sand at the bottom of the ocean and can be difficult to see. The hammerhead shark uses the sensory organs in its head to detect the electrical currents emitted by the sting ray in order to locate it even if it is buried in the sand. Once the hammerhead has located a buried sting ray, it will often use its flat head to pin the ray against the ocean floor as it eats it.

    Other Hammerheads

    • Hammerhead sharks have been known to eat other, smaller sharks as well as other hammerhead sharks.

      In the wild, hammerhead sharks have been known to eat other, smaller sharks including other hammerhead sharks. They have also been observed eating their own babies.

    Humans

    • Most hammerheads are not dangerous to man, though a few species have been known to attack swimmers and scuba divers.

      Most species of hammerhead shark are not dangerous to man because of their small size and small mouth, however, three species can be dangerous to man and have even been known to attack people. These are the great hammerhead shark, the smooth hammerhead shark, and the scalloped hammerhead shark.