Watch: An epic battle wages off the coast of Louisiana, between a tiger shark and a hammerhead.

A college student on a fishing trip in the Gulf of Mexico caught dramatic footage of a big tiger shark repeatedly attacking a hammerhead on a fishing line.

Shot on July 17, the video shows a hammerhead shark struggling on the line. Then, a tiger shark cruises in and bites the hammerhead.

The attack went on for several minutes, until the tiger shark "grabbed the hammerhead around its head, broke the line, and then dragged him straight down," says Ryan Willsea, who made the video with his brother Aaron, and whose line caught the hammerhead.

"It was an incredible thing to see and catch on film," he says.

Willsea spent three days fishing in the Gulf during a vacation to the area,

DON'T MISS THE REST OF THIS STORY!
Create a free account to continue and get unlimited access to hundreds of Nat Geo articles, plus newsletters.

Create your free account to continue reading

No credit card required. Unlimited access to free content.
Or get a Premium Subscription to access the best of Nat Geo - just $19
SUBSCRIBE

Read This Next

Is banning fishing bad for fishermen? Not in this marine reserve
SeaWorld violated the Animal Welfare Act. Why is it still open?
'World’s worst shipwreck' was bloodier than we thought

Go Further

Subscriber Exclusive Content

Why are people so dang obsessed with Mars?

How viruses shape our world

The era of greyhound racing in the U.S. is coming to an end

See how people have imagined life on Mars through history

See how NASA’s new Mars rover will explore the red planet

Why are people so dang obsessed with Mars?

How viruses shape our world

The era of greyhound racing in the U.S. is coming to an end

See how people have imagined life on Mars through history

See how NASA’s new Mars rover will explore the red planet

Why are people so dang obsessed with Mars?

How viruses shape our world

The era of greyhound racing in the U.S. is coming to an end

See how people have imagined life on Mars through history

See how NASA’s new Mars rover will explore the red planet