Hammer-heads to the UK
We all scoffed when the great white shark from Jaws the Revenge turned up in the Bahamas, but now a shark species that has never been spotted in UK waters has been seen for the very first time, the hammerhead. A smooth hammerhead to be exact.
This distinctive creature can grow up to 20 feet long and it is more at home in tropical climbs, like the Caribbean or West African coast.
It’s unique shaped head is where it gets its name and allows the shark to to see 360 degrees at all times.
Of course, some of the media have branded it ‘terrifying’ but these majestic fish are listed as vulnerable due to them being targeted for their fins. As usual it is man they need to fear rather than the other way round.
In fact experts say there are no known fatalities on record as being attributed to hammerhead sharks. There are at least nine different types of hammerhead sharks, only three species have been know to attack humans — the great hammerhead shark, the smooth hammerhead shark and the scalloped hammerhead shark — although this has only been 17 times in the past 450 years. As we mentioned, none of those attacks were serious enough to be fatal.
It’s unclear if the shark was lost or whether this is the shape of dorsal fins to come. And expect plenty of those ‘sightings’ (ahem) as we enter the summer holiday season.
If a hammerhead is possible in UK waters, then of course talk soon comes round to whether a great white could follow.
Either way, we should be excited and not terrified at the prospect of a new species of shark in UK waters.
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