Hammerhead shark spotted off Chatham

A smooth hammerhead shark made an appearance off Cape Cod last week, in a relatively rare sighting in New England waters.

The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy shared a social media post Thursday saying the shark was spotted off Monomoy Island in Chatham on July 20. The post included two photos of the shark, with its distinctive hammerhead head underwater and one fin protruding above the surface.

“Wow! What an incredible (and rare) smooth hammerhead shark sighting off Monomoy Island on Saturday, July 20! Thank you, L. Bovenzi, for sharing this with us! We may be a white shark organization, but we will always appreciate a special shark sighting,” the conservation group wrote.

Smooth hammerhead sharks prefer tropical waters around the world, although they are most likely to tolerate temperate waters, according to NOAA Fisheries. Experts say they are also highly mobile and tend to travel long distances. In the eastern United States, they are most commonly seen from New Jersey to Florida and the Gulf of Mexico.

“This is fantastic news. Warmer water temperatures are pushing it up into the Gulf Stream? I have to admit, hammerheads are my favorite sharks. But don’t worry, I still love hammerheads.” [Great White]”, wrote one Facebook user.

Great white sharks are the most common and well-known shark species in New England waters. According to the Sharktivity app, dozens of great white sharks have been spotted along the Massachusetts coast over the past month. Most of these sightings have been on Cape Cod.