Hammerhead shark

Why would a shark flatten its head into a wide hammer? The best-tested answer is hunting by electricity. In experiments, hammerheads detected hidden prey 40% farther from their swimming path than sandbar sharks with ordinary heads, because the wide head carries electroreceptors across a broader sweep of seabed, like a metal detector. Other ideas have fared worse. The same research found the head stays level when the shark turns, ruling out the theory that it works as a steering wing. Vision is a likelier bonus: a 2009 study found the wide-set eyes give hammerheads far more binocular overlap in front of the head than sharks with pointed snouts.