Megalodon
Created | Updated Jan 28, 2002
Megalodon, the Big Daddy of the modern Great White Shark, appeared in prehistoric oceans during the Oligocene Period and ruled their marine domain for 20 million years, until they became extinct a mere 2 million years ago.
No fossil megalodon skeletons have ever been found except for an occasional vertebra, because shark skeletons consist of cartilage and not bone. Cartilage decomposes long before it can fossilise.
However, megalodon teeth provide an excellent indication of the size of these fearsome creatures. They were the largest predators that ever lived on land or sea. If you could place a fully grown megalodon upright on its nose, it would be as tall as a six-story building: 65 feet high.
Megalodon teeth can be up to eight inches (20 cm) long, covered in tiny serrated “teeth” and weigh up to a pound (half a kilo). Compare this with the largest teeth of the Great White, which measure 3 inches (8 cm) and weigh but a few ounces.
Fossil megalodon teeth are collectors’ items and fetch very high prices if they are in good condition. Teeth in pristine condition are rare: a few million years take their toll. Collectors will pay up to a thousand dollars for a six-inch megalodon tooth that still has its enamel and all its serrations. The colours of these teeth are interesting: the tooth becomes impregnated with minerals from the sediment in which it fossilises, and can be practically any colour at all, from a dingy grey to blue, red or orange.
Intact jaws have also been found and can be seen in natural history museums. Standing before a gaping set of megalodon dentures through which you could drive a truck without scraping the paint, certainly makes one very happy that two million years separate us from these monsters.
No fossil megalodon skeletons have ever been found except for an occasional vertebra, because shark skeletons consist of cartilage and not bone. Cartilage decomposes long before it can fossilise.
However, megalodon teeth provide an excellent indication of the size of these fearsome creatures. They were the largest predators that ever lived on land or sea. If you could place a fully grown megalodon upright on its nose, it would be as tall as a six-story building: 65 feet high.
Megalodon teeth can be up to eight inches (20 cm) long, covered in tiny serrated “teeth” and weigh up to a pound (half a kilo). Compare this with the largest teeth of the Great White, which measure 3 inches (8 cm) and weigh but a few ounces.
Fossil megalodon teeth are collectors’ items and fetch very high prices if they are in good condition. Teeth in pristine condition are rare: a few million years take their toll. Collectors will pay up to a thousand dollars for a six-inch megalodon tooth that still has its enamel and all its serrations. The colours of these teeth are interesting: the tooth becomes impregnated with minerals from the sediment in which it fossilises, and can be practically any colour at all, from a dingy grey to blue, red or orange.
Intact jaws have also been found and can be seen in natural history museums. Standing before a gaping set of megalodon dentures through which you could drive a truck without scraping the paint, certainly makes one very happy that two million years separate us from these monsters.
