Some-fin strange as danger shark heads our way

A HAMMERHEAD shark has been sighted by marine scientists near UK waters – thousands of miles from its native hunting grounds.

The predator, with its distinctive hammer-shaped flat head, was fleetingly spotted in the Celtic Sea about 100 miles south west of Ireland.

It comes a week after one expert said some shark species could become regular visitors to British waters by 2050 because of rising sea temperatures.

Hammerheads, which can grow to 20 feet, usually inhabit warm, tropical waters such as the Caribbean and West Africa and migrate to cooler seas in the summer. who spotted it, said: “We sighted a dorsal fin unlike anything we had encountered before. It was quite different to the fins seen on basking sharks and blue sharks.

“After consulting available ID keys, we agreed that the shark must be a smooth hammerhead.”

Dr Simon Boxall, of the National Oceanography Centre, said he was not surprised by the sighting.

“Temperatures in these waters have increased by 2.5C over the last 20 years and more exotic species carried by the Gulf Stream are travelling further north for food,” he said.

“It could be a very lost hammerhead shark, but more likely it is because our oceans are getting warmer. They are not particularly interested in humans but they are more dangerous than a porbeagle shark native to UK waters.

“There is no reason why more shark species like hammerheads and great whites can’t exist in our waters.”

There have been no known fatalities from hammerhead sharks.

They are listed by scientists as vulnerable as their numbers diminish and are increasingly targeted for the shark fin trade.