2023-10-03 04:00:03
The evolution of a shark embryo may seem mundane until, suddenly, a hammer-shaped head appears. A recent study from the University of Florida offers a unique look at how this amazing feature forms in hammerhead sharks.
A baby hammerhead shark during its development with a hammerhead (hammerhead may refer to:) emerging.
Credit: Gareth Fraser
Led by Gareth Fraser, professor of biology at the University of Florida, the study reveals how tiburo hammerhead shark embryos, smallest species of hammerhead sharks, modify the shape of their skull (The skull is a bony or cartilaginous structure of the head, characteristic …). Mid-gestation, their heads suddenly enlarge, pushing their growing eyes at odd angles. As the weeks pass, the front part of the head takes on a shovel shape, characteristic of these sea creatures .
Graduate student Steven Byrum also contributed to this research. Tiburo hammerhead sharks, abundant in the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean (Italian golfo, Greek kolpos, fold) one of the five oceans of the Earth. Its surface area of…), are easier to study because they spend time near the coasts . However, this detailed observation of their development was hitherto unprecedented. Unlike most fish (Pisces is a zodiac constellation crossed by the Sun from March 12 to 18…) and many sharks which lay eggs, hammerhead sharks give birth to live young. This particularity makes it difficult to observe their embryonic development.
The study paves the way for future experiments to understand how these sharks control the shape of their heads and why they have evolved these unusual features, thought to improve their field of vision and their ability to detect the electrical movements of their prey.
“Electric movement” refers to the ability of these animals to detect electromagnetic fields generated by other sea creatures. This electro-receptive sense allows them to locate their prey even when it is hidden in the sand or in the dark. Sharks have specialized organs called ampullae of Lorenzini that allow them to detect these tiny electric fields. This mechanism contributes to their effectiveness as predators.
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