New evidence from the megalodon shark shows the creature looked 'very different' from the great white shark
NEW evidence suggests megalodon sharks looked very different from the giant great white sharks depicted in science fiction films.
Recent research suggests that the shark, which lived about 15 to 3.6 million years ago, was actually longer and leaner than other studies claim.
2
Most of what we know about megalodon sharks comes from giant fossilized teeth.
No fully fossilized specimen of the ancient beast has ever been found.
That's probably because shark skeletons are mainly made of cartilage that decays quickly.
For this reason, scientists must estimate what the shark would have looked like.
Previous studies estimated that megalodons could grow up to 20 meters in length.
Modern great white sharks have largely been used as models to estimate the megalodon's body shape.
a new study published in the journal Palaeontologia Electronica now challenges this idea.
Kenshu Shimada is a professor of paleobiology at DePaul University and co-leader of the study.
Shimada said: “The remarkably simple evidence that O. megalodon had a more slender body than the great white shark was hidden in plain sight.”
The researchers reanalyzed fossils and previously published studies to draw their conclusions.
They focused mainly on two studies describing the same incomplete set of fossilized megalodon shark vertebrae.
One study said that the vertebral length of this particular ancient shark was 11 meters.
The other claimed it was only 30 feet long.
“It was a 'eureka moment' when our research team realized the discrepancy between the two previously published lengths for the same Megalodon specimen,” Shimada explained.
“The new study strongly suggests that the body shape of O. megalodon was not just a larger version of the modern great white shark,” said co-leader Phillip Sternes.
“While it remains uncertain exactly how long the body of O. megalodon was elongated relative to the great white shark, this new finding marks a major scientific breakthrough in the quest to decipher what Megalodon looked like.”
Shimada described the hunt for the truth about megalodon sharks as an “ongoing mystery” that is both “fascinating and exciting.”