Beachgoers catching some sun Thursday in Orange Beach, Ala., stumbled upon a 14-foot hammerhead shark that had washed ashore.
After pulling it fully to the shore, they contacted Orange Beach Coastal Resources, according to the agency. Researchers later discovered it was pregnant with around 40 shark pups.
“Our staff quickly arrived and were able to get it off of the beach, it said. “While it was very sad that it passed, we were excited about the rare opportunity of seeing a Great hammerhead in such good condition.”
According to the Georgia Aquarium, female Great hammerhead sharks can grow to be 15 to 18 feet long and weigh around 990 pounds. These are the largest species of hammerhead sharks, which are distinguished by their distinctive head shape.
Great hammerheads are “found over the continental shelves, island terraces and in passes and lagoons of coral atolls, as well as over deep water near land,” said the the Shark Research Institute.
Immediately after the Great hammerhead was found in Orange Beach, Coastal Resources began contacting various agencies ‘to see who had availability to come gather data from this unique specimen.”
Dr. Marcus Drymon of Mississippi State University Marine Fisheries Ecology, a researcher who focuses on coastal sharks, sent a team to perform a necropsy on the shark, the agency said. A case of death had not yet been determined as of Saturday. However, researchers did determine that the shark was pregnant with 40 pups.
“While it is sad, it is very rare to find a large pregnant female, and the data collected will be tremendously helpful in learning about Great hammerhead fecundity,” said Coastal Resources. “We are very thankful that our staff was able to get the shark off of the beach, protected from the elements, and iced down within a few short hours of the initial call. This was definitely an experience that we won’t forget, and we are grateful to have played a small role in this unique case.”
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