Fishermen have been catching what they thought were small hammerhead sharks in the waters off Belize in Central America for years. They have shared many of these fish with scientists who are working to protect shark populations that are dwindling worldwide.
But something was amiss. The hammerheads had many of the characteristics of that eponymous species but these sharks were longer and leaner. And their hammerheads were in fact more the shape of a shovel than a hammer.
Research on these Belizean sharks, often funded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, started to uncover evidence that these local sharks were in fact quite different.
DNA tests, skeletal comparisons, teeth samples all led the researchers to the final conclusion that the shovel-headed sharks were in fact an entirely new species. In the shark world, finding a new species is big news, not something that happens every day.
In the peer-reviewed scientific journal Zootaxa, published on September 23, 2024, a paper written by the researchers in Belize put forward their case for the new species and the scientific community is standing behind them.
The new species has been named Sphyrna alleni, or Shovelbill shark. The alleni in the name is a grateful nod to Paul Allen and his family foundation that funds shark research and preservation projects.
