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Megalodon, a giant shark that lived 18-1.5 million years ago, is known primarily from fossilized teeth that are so hard they barely deteriorated. Its teeth are about 5 inches long, and modern size estimates put it at 12-18.2 meters long. Megalodon preyed on early right whales and is believed to have become extinct due to climate change or the extinction of key prey items.
Megalodon is a huge, terrifying shark that lived in shallow continental seas about 18 to 1.5 million years ago. Like other fossil sharks, megalodon, whose name means “big tooth” in Greek, is known primarily from fossilized teeth. These teeth are so hard that they barely deteriorated in the shark’s lifetime, leaving fossil teeth so sharp that some amateurs have taken them as evidence that they were left behind relatively recently. Only a few non-dental megalodon fossils have been found, in the form of several vertebrae. The megalodon is one of the most interesting and popular fossil fish, both among the public and the paleontological community.
A megalodon tooth is about 5 inches (13 cm) long, about the size of a human hand. This is many times the size of a great white shark’s tooth, usually measuring only about an inch (2.5 cm) long. The fossil teeth of megalodon are black, although they would have been white in life. Some of these fossils are valuable collector’s items and considered among the best investment fossils.
Although early reconstructions of megalodon based on its teeth resulted in size estimates in the range of 25 m (82 ft), they were later found to be based on an inaccurate reconstruction of the jaw. Modern size estimates are between 12 m (39 ft) and 18.2 m (60 ft), about two to three times the size of a great white shark. This is more than enough to qualify it as the largest predatory fish of all time, by extension the largest shark and one of the largest fish that ever lived. Some might say it is the most terrifying predator since the Tyrannosaurus rex.
Initially, megalodon and the great white shark were thought to be closely related, but today most scientists believe that they split evolutionary paths from the great white shark earlier than previously thought, deserving classification under a genus extinct, Carcharocles, rather than the large white genus Carcharodon. The debate “Carcharocles vs. Carcharodon” is one of the most controversial in marine paleontology.
Megalodon is thought to have preyed on early right whales, which tended to be smaller and slower than today’s whales. This was supported by fossil evidence of whale bones with gigantic tooth marks. With a 7-foot (2.1 m) gaping mouth, the megalodon could have swallowed small whales whole and inflicted fatal bites on even the largest whales of the time. It would have had to consume an enormous amount of food to support its enormous mass, estimated at around 50 tons.
One and a half million years ago, for an unknown reason, this sea monster became extinct. A variety of hypotheses have been proposed, including climate change and the extinction of key prey items.
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