Bonnethead Shark Identification Guide

Key identification features

• Smooth, evenly rounded, shovel-shaped head with no notches, unlike the classic hammerhead T-shape
• Small size, typically 2-4 feet, making it the smallest hammerhead species
• Slender, gray to grayish-brown body with a pale underside
• Single tall first dorsal fin set forward on the back, noticeably taller than the second dorsal
• Slightly curved anal fin and a long lower tail lobe

Common look-alikes

• Scalloped hammerhead: much larger and has a distinctly indented, scalloped front margin on its head
• Great hammerhead: far larger with a nearly straight-edged, very wide head and a tall, sickle-shaped first dorsal fin
• Winghead shark: has an extremely elongated head far wider than a Bonnethead's, found only in the Indo-Pacific

Where you'll see one

Bonnetheads favor shallow, warm coastal water, especially seagrass flats, bays, and estuaries along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts, as well as parts of the eastern Pacific. They frequently travel in loose schools and are commonly seen cruising just below the surface in skinny water.

Their small size and rounded head make them one of the easier hammerheads to distinguish from its relatives, even for casual observers snorkeling in grass flats.