The Atlantic Shark Institute has shared rare footage of a scalloped hammerhead shark swimming near the surface off Rhode Island.
"This shark was enjoying the warmer temperatures at the top of the water column as it cruised near Block Island, RI, when it was spotted and filmed by ASI Resident Filmmaker, Tomas Koeck,” the Atlantic Shark Institute explained via social media. (See footage below.)
Scalloped hammerhead sharks are found globally in warm-temperate and tropical waters. In the western Atlantic, according to NOAA Fisheries, their range is from New Jersey to Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea.
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The shark encountered by the Atlantic Shark Institute on
July 24, during a sandbar shark tagging expedition, was north of the species’ typical range.
Jon Dodd, executive director of the ASI, said in a statement: "With our warming waters, many of the shark species that New England residents associate with Florida and southern states are finding our water temperatures much more attractive than they would have just 25 years ago.”
The ASI crew was unsuccessful in tagging the shark shown in the video, but did tag a smaller hammerhead shark in what was described as a "milestone" moment.
Scalloped hammerhead sharks can measure nearly 12 feet and weigh more than 300 pounds.
They’re listed as critically endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act in the western Atlantic.
According to the Florida Museum, scalloped hammerhead sharks are "potentially dangerous" and have been implicated in 17 unprovoked attacks on humans, all non-fatal.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Hammerhead shark spotted off Rhode Island in rare, surreal scene
