The Dorsal Fin

According to a release from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) the harvest of tiger sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier), great hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna mokarran), scalloped hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna lewini), and smooth hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna zygaena) will be prohibited in state waters. The measure, which was voted on today, will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2012.

The measure will also prohibit the “possession, sale and exchange” of any of the four species that are taken from state waters. However, the species may still be caught on a catch and release basis. The measure applies only to state waters and does not prohibit the harvest of these four species in adjacent federal waters.

According to a WPTV.com report a 9′ (2.75 m) female scalloped hammerhead was caught by fisherman off-shore and then left dead on the docks of the Sailfish Marina in Palm Beach, Florida. The abandoned catch has stirred up some controversy. A WPBF.com report on the event quotes Jim Abernathy as saying that the catch was illegal based on Florida law. According to Abernathy, any fish that is not intended to be eaten must be immediately released under the state law.

Despite being listed as an endangered species on the IUCN Redlist, the scalloped hammerhead (Sphyrna lewini) is not a protected species in Florida waters.

I really like the second half of the video clip above from NatGeo Wild. It’s actually rich with information about how sharks locate meals. It also educates the audience about ampullae of Lorenzini, and the hammerhead shark’s unique head shape.

Unfortunately, the first half of the video contains ominous warnings about humans and hammerheads being on a “collision course,” because they happen to occupy the same body of water. This is followed by some relatively graphic “attack” footage that seems to be forced into the segment, as it really has nothing to do with the narrator’s discussion of the hammerhead shark. In fact, not long after the second instance of faux shark attack footage, the narrator asserts that the scalloped hammerhead sharks in question “don’t appear to look upon humans as a potential meal.”

The video does go on to redeem itself after the unnecessary “attack” footage, but it makes me wonder why the clip has scenes of panicking victims and bloody water, in the first place. I also question why the information describing the video refers to the hammerhead as a “vicious shark” who “never lets a human get between it and a tasty meal,” when the main theme of the video speaks to the contrary.

I’ve enjoyed National Geographic’s offerings ever since I can remember, and it was a National Geographic feature on white sharks that first piqued my interest in sharks when I was barely old enough to read. It makes me wonder if a young child were watching this clip whether they would be more likely to remember the worthwhile information in the second half of the clip or the scenes of an implied shark attack.