PAPO Aquatic Animals Hammerhead Shark Catalogue Number: 582-2567

The hammerhead sharks are a group of sharks in the family Sphyrnidae, so named for the unusual and distinctive structure of their heads, which are flattened and laterally extended into a "hammer" shape called a "cephalofoil". It was determined recently that the hammer-like shape of the head may have evolved (at least in part) to enhance the animal's vision. The positioning of the eyes, mounted on the sides of the shark's distinctive hammer head give the shark good 360-degree vision in the vertical plane, meaning they can see above and below them at all times.