Hammerhead shark snatches tarpon from angler off Anna Maria Island

A hammerhead shark surprised a group of anglers off Anna Maria Island on Monday morning.

William Osborne, a charter captain and tarpon angler out of Anna Maria Island, was fishing a few hundred yards off Bean Point when the hammerhead surfaced near his boat.

Osborne caught video of the hammerhead as it swam around the boat and went after a tarpon he was trying to bring in.

Osborne said he had another encounter a few days earlier with a hammerhead shark who took a massive bite off another tarpon he was trying to land. He suspects the same hammerhead was involved in both tarpon attacks.

“I tried to get the hammerhead off the fish by spinning around the attack with my motor, but it still managed to get a hold of the tarpon unfortunately,” he said.

Osborne said the hammerhead appeared to be about 13 feet long and possibly weighed about 1,000 pounds.

Hammerhead sharks can be found in tropical waters around the world, including the Gulf of Mexico.

While potentially dangerous due to their size, hammerheads rarely attack humans. According to the International Shark Attack File, hammerheads have reportedly only bitten 17 people, and none were fatal.

This story was originally published May 19, 2016 at 7:50 AM with the headline "Hammerhead shark snatches tarpon from angler off Anna Maria Island."