Extend your knowledge towards understanding the the real Megalodon shark facts that had gone extinct. The word megalodon refers to the ‘big tooth’. The megalodon shark became extinct some 28 – 1.5 million years ago in the period of Cenozoic Epoch. Little facts are known about the taxonomy of these extinct species. Nonetheless, scientists regard megalodon sharks as one of the most powerful predators in the history of vertebrates. According to the fossil’s evidence these sharks might be as long as 15.9 – 20.3 meters (52 – 61 feet). They had been known to have cosmopolitan distribution around the globe.
Amazing Megalodon Shark Facts
Of all the extant species, the great white sharks are considered to be the closest relative to C. megalodon. It follows that scientists could not found enough fossils for megalodon to describe precisely the anatomy of these extinct species and therefore they had to rely on the great white sharks size and anatomy to assess.
The megalodon shark was thought to be greater than the whale shark.
According to Prof. Bashford Dean the megalodon sharks could be as long as 30 meters (98 feet). However, the latest advancement in discoveries tells the different story. This length is now regarded as inaccurate.
The megalodon shark was by far the biggest prehistoric shark that has ever existed on the planet earth.
The teeth of these marine creatures were thought to be 7 inches long.
The megalodon shark’s teeth have been discovered from different places due to the fact that sharks continuously shed their teeth over the period of time.
The great white sharks have a bite force of about 1.8 tons while the megalodon sharks had the bite force of 10.8 – 18.2 tons which means that they could easily crush the skull of some other prehistoric whales.
According to paleontologists, the length of the megalodon sharks were measured at 40 – 100 feet, with more consensuses is on the size of 55 – 60 feet.
The weight of these species was known to be 50 – 100 tons.
These megalodon sharks were primarily known to feed on prehistoric sharks including giant turtles, dolphins, squids, fish, and other similar large species.
Scientists aren’t confident enough to disclose facts about the probable reasons for the extinction of megalodon sharks. However, some of the arguments that were put forward by paleontologists were that these species might have suffered from global cooling that made them disappeared altogether; or that the number of whales (which comprises the bulk of their diet) had gone extinct.
Some of the most common nesting sites of megalodon sharks were Gatun Formation of Panama, Bone Valley Formation of Florida, and Calvert Formation of Maryland. They were deemed to reside in warm waters since there were abundant of foods available in these waters.
The megalodon sharks were known to give birth to live young.
The length of the pups was measured at 2 – 4 meters (7 – 13 feet).
Read More: Megalodon Shark Facts for Kids
Where Did Megalodon Sharks Live
According to the discovered evidences the megalodon sharks were known to migrate great distances possibly in search of their prey. This fact came to the fore when the teeth of these species were found everywhere around the major waters of the world. They had existed in moderate and subtropical latitudes. They were thought to cover almost all the waters including sandy littorals, coastal upwelling, shallow waters, and offshore deep waters.
What Did Megalodon Sharks Eat
These gigantic sharks were predominantly regarded as opportunistic feeders. They prim,arily preyed on various marine species such as whales, dolphins, squid, fish, bowhead whales, porpoises, giant turtles, pinnipeds, sperm whales, squalodontids, cetotherrids, and rorquals.
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