Great Hammerhead

Sphyrna mokarran

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Elasmobranchii
Order: Carcharhiniformes
Family: Sphyrnidae
Genus: Sphyrna
Species: Sphyrna mokarran

The great hammerhead (Sphyrna mokarran) is the largest hammerhead shark, reaching about 6 m. Its broad head has a nearly straight front edge with a small notch in the centre, and its first dorsal fin is extremely tall and sickle-shaped.

It is a solitary, wide-ranging predator that favours stingrays, which it pins to the seabed with its head, as well as other rays, bony fish and smaller sharks. Unlike the scalloped hammerhead, it rarely forms schools. The species is listed as Critically Endangered.

In the Philippines great hammerheads are rare, with occasional records from coastal and offshore waters. Divers are most likely to meet one alone, cruising over sandy slopes near reefs.

Photo: Dan Schofield, CC BY 4.0, via iNaturalist