Each week, CatchMark Community features a Wild Animal Fact from Montague native Seth Simon, the creator of the popular bite-sized wildlife series. Seth is known for his upbeat personality, love of animals, and knack for turning fascinating facts into fun, 60-second reads. His goal is to spark curiosity, encourage conservation awareness, and bring a little joy to everyone who follows along. We’re proud to share his work and add a touch of “wild” to your week.
As part of this weekly feature, Seth brings his signature enthusiasm straight to our readers with a fresh creature spotlight—packed with quick facts, habitat insights, and the unique quirks that make each animal extraordinary. His posts combine education and entertainment in a way that’s accessible for all ages, making wildlife learning both fun and memorable. Enjoy this week’s feature below!
Hey 
Wild Fact Fans, Seth here with the new Friday Feature creature. Don’t forget to please like 
, share and comment 
questions 
down below 
If you have any on this weeks animal ^^ or any creature you’d like me to do a post on in the future
first wanna say i hope you all had a truly wonderful Christmas 
with all your dear family & friends ^^. And i hope this will be a good sign to come for all of us as we near the beginning of the end of 25 and the dawning of 2026 ^^. May this coming year be a good, joyful & prosperous new year for all; including with the many more creatures i have to share in the years to come.
And with that said, this year’s final feature creature is the 2nd half of the Fahlo creature shout out plan i had for this holiday season ^^. And just like the first one, this amazing & ancient animal is found riding the tides of Tropical 
coasts around the world 
. While many people fear 
its kind, these creatures; including this species in general, wants nothing to do with us while it catches some rays near the ocean surface as it searches the white sandy ocean floor for its favorite meals like flounders & stingrays. With its unique and bizarre head; its a truly amazing sight to behold from a good distance as it slowly swims by with powerful waves of its tail. While it may be a powerful predator; this creature as it becomes more and more rare, we should appreciate being able to share the same tropical 
waters we vacation 
at during the holidays woth such a magnificent fish; instead of hunted out of fear or for sport 
.
This weeks feature creature is the Great Hammerhead Shark 
1. Measuring in at 10 to 15ft (sometimes 20 ft , almost the length of a Great white!) & weighing in at 510 to 1,280 lbs; the Great Hammerhead is the largest Hammerhead of the 9 species that came around 20 mya; which makes them the youngest of the ancient shark clan.
2. Females are usually larger than males; and both can live to be 20 to 44 years old.
3. Like its hammerhead relatives, the Great hammerhead is mainly found in tropical waters around the world 
. They prefer near coastlines, lagoons, coral reefs 
, ocean drop offs and mostly near land areas.
4. The Great Hammerhead can be distinguished from other Hammerheads is thru its head which is called a “cephalofoil” in hammerheads. Each species has a unique head shape; and the Great Hammerhead has a 3ft long near perfectly straight hammer 
shape.
5. As with its relatives; Great Hammerheads have a varied carnivorous diet of prey such as fish 
(especially Flounders & other sand hiding 
fish), crabs 
, lobsters, octopi 
, squids 
and even smaller sharks including other hammerheads! But their top favorite food is Stingrays & skates
6. With an immunity to Stingray venom & barbs along with a perfect head to find them like a metal detector; they pin them to the ocean floor with their head before biting with their sharp pointed teeth 
for grasping wriggling prey like rays, skates & flounders. They also have flatter and more molar-like back teeth for crushing the hard shells of crustaceans and mollusks. One Great Hammerhead was found with 96 stingray barbs embedded in its mouth 
!
7. Hammerheads have the smallest mouths compared to their head size ; yet still have 17 rows (26 to 32 teeth per row) of these jagged, sharp triangular teeth in their mouths that are constantly being replaced. They also have a bite force of 500 to 600 lbs!
8. Even though a Hammerhead has 360 vision cause of its eye’s 
being positioned on each side of its head; they have a big blind spot head onward. So hammerheads have to turn to the side to see in front of them. Their hammerheads also help give lift like airplane 
since they’re less buoyant than other sharks. They often swim with their heads tilted sideways to save energy & reduce drag.
9. Along with being able to judge distance really well & have a greater sense of smell 
due to their headshape; the 3,000 special sensory organs in their head called “Ampullae of Lorenzini” helps them sense electrical 
signals from living creatures; even under the sand. Having a large wide head gives them more of the receptors & stronger senses than other sharks; which makes them expert ocean floor hunters. They can sense an electrical signal as low as one-millionth of a volt!
10. Hammerheads are usually light greenish gray to dark brown on top of their bodys while light on the bottom for ocean camo. Since they often swim around 3 to 5ft near the surface of the water 
; they have a special sunscreen 
in their skin which can cause them to Tan 
instead of sunburn 
. They often hang at depths of 30 to 80 ft but can go deeper to 262 ft!
11. Along with their sharp teeth , swimming speeds of 25 mph & agility; their rough dermal denticle skin is their main defenses against larger more powerful sharks like Bulls & Tigers ; and of course their top enemy, Orcas.
12. They’re mainly solitary and only come together to mate during the spring & summer in special mating grounds that scientists aren’t sure of where yet. They can travel 
745 to 1,864 miles for these meeting locals along with to new feeding grounds as well during different seasons of the year
13. Besides their own kind; Great Hammerheads are often accompanied by Pilot Fish & Remoras who help keep the sharks clear of parasites 
& feed on the leftovers of their meals 
.
14. When mating Males often bite females and hold onto their pectoral fins with their teeth. this lead to thicker skin (twice as thick as males) to deal with these love 
bites. Along with that during courtship, males often follow behind or beneath females for days before mating; even Some engaging in elaborate swimming patterns to show off and attract the female to mate.
15. Great Hammerheads are Viviparous sharks; which means they’re among the few who give birth to live young. After nearly to a full year of pregnancy, they give birth to around 6-55 independent sharks every 2 years. And if that wasnt strange enough; Great Hammerhead Females have the special method of “Parthenogenesis”, which means they can give birth to pups without breeding or even just breed without males !
16. Pups start off with rounded heads that grow into the classic head shape as they fully mature in 5 to 9 years. Until full sized, they often hang around near reefs for protection from predators like larger fish , octopuses , & other sharks ; including other hammerheads!
17. Attacks from Great Hammerheads on people are extremely rare; only in case when a human crosses into their territory or when they feel threatened since they’re usually shy to humans. They also bump into boats 
and other ocean vehicles because of their electroreception by accident
Next weeks feature Creature hint 
: this mini dragon 
with its rigged spined back may not breath fire 
; but this aquatic creature can pack a nasty punch 
with toxins in its skin
Wild Animal Facts: Peregrine Falcon
Stay connected to what’s happening in our area by visiting CatchMark Community.
Powered by CatchMark Technologies — helping people, solving problems. Explore more on our website.
