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Smalleye Hammerhead
Compagno, CC BY-SA 4.0, via iNaturalist

Sharks & rays

Smalleye Hammerhead

Sphyrna tudes (Valenciennes, 1822)

CR Critically EndangeredOn Suriname's list of threatened fauna

Names

EnglishSmalleye Hammerhead
DutchKleinooghamerhaai
SpanishCornuda de ojos pequeños
Chinese小眼双髻鲨
Scientific nameSphyrna tudes (Valenciennes, 1822)

About this species

The smalleye hammerhead (Sphyrna tudes), also called the golden hammerhead or curry shark, is a small species of hammerhead shark in the family Sphyrnidae. This species was historically common in the shallow coastal waters of the western Atlantic Ocean, from Venezuela to Uruguay. It favors muddy habitats with poor visibility, reflected by its relatively small eyes. Adult males and juveniles are schooling and generally found apart from the solitary adult females. Typically reaching 1.2–1.3 m (3.9–4.3 ft) in length, this shark has a unique, bright golden color on its head, sides, and fins, which was only scientifically documented in the 1980s. As in all hammerheads, its head is flattened and laterally expanded into a hammer-shaped structure called the cephalofoil, which in this species is wide and long with an arched front margin bearing central and lateral indentations.

Read more on Wikipedia · Text: Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Classification

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassElasmobranchii
OrderCarcharhiniformes
FamilySphyrnidae
GenusSphyrna

Related species in Suriname