SHARK VS SHARK

Great hammerheadvsPtychodus

Length, weight and bite evidence—plus context from a human, city bus and blue whale. Every number below carries its uncertainty with it.

LivingSphyrna mokarran×ExtinctPtychodus mortoni
QUICK VERDICT

Ptychodus is about 1.59× longer by these reference values.

Ptychodus uses a 9.7 m upper reference, compared with 6.1 m for Great hammerhead. A clean mass ratio is not shown because at least one weight is not reliably reconstructed.

01

ON THE SAME SCALE

Human. Bus. Whale.
Pick your reference.

RELATIVE LENGTH · 0–24 METERS
AGreat hammerheadreported to 6.1 m / 20 ft
BPtychodusrecent reconstructions approach 9.7 m / 32 ft
REFAdult human1.8 m · about 80 kg

Length bars use upper comparison values and do not show body depth, tail proportion or typical adult size. A long thresher tail, for example, does not equal whale-shark body mass.

02

THE NUMBERS

Side by side.

MeasureGreat hammerheadPtychodus
Length referencereported to 6.1 m / 20 ftrecent reconstructions approach 9.7 m / 32 ft
Weight referencerecorded to about 450 kg / 991 lbNot reliably reconstructed
Bite forceNo dependable maximum foundUnknownNo defensible estimate usedUnknown
TimeTropical coastal and offshore watersabout 100–85 million years ago
DietRays, fish and smaller sharksHard-shelled prey
03

WHAT THE DATA CAN SAY

Size is not the whole animal.

Length and weight

Great hammerhead is represented by reported to 6.1 m / 20 ft; Ptychodus by recent reconstructions approach 9.7 m / 32 ft. The comparison uses the largest reported length and a record mass. A body outline is rare; length estimates can change with new fossils.

Bite evidence

Great hammerhead: Comparative biomechanics exist, but a simple verified maximum is not established here. Ptychodus: Hard-prey specialization does not justify inventing a force number.

Living versus extinct

At least one animal is known from fossils. Fossil length, weight and bite estimates depend on which living analogues and scaling equations researchers choose.

Ecology changes the matchup

Its wide head is a sensory platform, not just an unusual silhouette. Flattened crushing teeth—not knife-like teeth—defined this huge shark.

04

TRACE THE CLAIMS

Sources and limits.

Great hammerheadFlorida MuseumPtychodusPaleobiology DatabaseHow we standardize comparisonsRead the methodology →