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BONNETHEAD
Sphyrna tiburo
SIZE
To about 5 ft (1.5 m).
DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS
- Head shovel-shaped, lacking indentation at midline, evenly rounded between eyes
- Back and sides often with scattered small dark spots
- Color gray, tan, or greenish above, paler below
- No interdorsal ridge
DISTRIBUTION
NC to Brazil, including Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea. Rare to RI.
HABITAT
Warm, shallow coastal waters over sandy and muddy bottoms, coral reefs, and grass flats; common in bays and estuaries.
SIMILAR SPECIES
Scalloped hammerhead, Great Hammerhead, and Smooth Hammerhead attain greater maximum size; have hammer-shaped, not shovel-shaped, heads.
MORE INFORMATION
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Text descriptions taken from Guide to Sharks, Tunas, & Billfishes of the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico |
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(File Modified Sep. 13 2011)
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