Do Fish Wear Bonnets?

It was a beautiful day on the Emerald Coast, Florida. It was a tad rough and a bit more turbid than usual, which was perfect for fishing. As I sat in the warm sun watching my rod, I decided some swimming would not be amiss, so I hopped in. I could still see my rod, and I couldn’t resist the clear, cool water. After a little swimming and still no fishing action, I did some skimboarding, with frequent glances over at my rod. Still no action. We ate lunch. No action. Things weren’t looking too good on the fishing front as I ran back into the waves for some more skimboarding and swimming.

Then it happened. Creeeak! Down went my rod. My feet pounded the beach, and I yanked the rod out of its sand spike. After a bit of pulling on both sides of the line, I pulled up a 26-inch bonnethead! Success at last!

The bonnethead is a small shark that grows to 4 feet, 6 inches. It lives from New England to Argentina on the Atlantic coast and from California to Peru on the Pacific coast. The bonnethead feeds on crustaceans, fishes, mollusks—and Daniel’s foot apparently. One took a swipe at Daniel’s toes in the water, and he still bears the scar.

A bonnethead is similar to a hammerhead except that it has a more pointed, shovel-shaped snout. Sometimes I wonder whether God created some animals just to make us laugh!

Information from: Gilbert, Carter R., and James D. Williams. National Audubon Society Field Guide to Fishes. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1983.

Photos by Jenny Venturo