Hammerhead sharks keep their bodies warm by holding their breath, preventing heat loss through their gills or mouths.
Hammerhead sharks are incredibly fascinating creatures. When they begin their deepest dives, they take a full breath and close their gills. This action has been described in a newly published study in the journal Science in the U.S. as a method to prevent their bodies from losing heat in the deep ocean waters.
Hammerhead shark. (Photo: Adobe).
Closing their gills and keeping their mouths shut during deep dives helps them conserve heat, allowing them to maintain their internal body temperature and easily navigate through cold waters.
An ocean-dwelling animal that holds its breath while diving may sound unbelievable. However, sharks do not breathe air like mammals. Instead, their gills extract oxygen from water. Many shark species rely on the surrounding water temperature to regulate their body temperature.
Thus, any heat they wish to retain while swimming in cold waters must be conserved within their bodies as much as possible. Therefore, it makes sense for them to close off all pathways for heat exchange to minimize heat loss. Hammerhead sharks keep their bodies warm by holding their breath, preventing heat from escaping through their gills or mouths.
The value of this research lies in enhancing our understanding of ocean-dwelling species. The more we observe and study them, the more we learn about their behaviors, and we may even discover other stranger creatures, as our oceans remain vast compared to human knowledge.
