On December 24, an American Airlines plane carried 411 kilos (904 pounds) of dried hammerhead shark fins from Alajuela, Costa Rica, to Hong Kong, touching down partway through the journey in Miami. The shipment, valued at nearly $53,000, contained fins from around 411 animals, more than seven times the number on its export permit from the Costa Rican government. The fins came from two species of shark: smooth hammerheads (Sphyrna zygaena), which are classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN, and scalloped hammerheads (Sphyrna lewini), which are classified as Endangered by the IUCN and under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
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