Palaeontology

World's largest ever shark may have been a lot thinner, scientists argue

By T.K. Randall
January 24, 2024

Image: AI-generated (Bing AI / Dall-E 3) Sporting several rows of deadly serrated teeth up to 5 inches long, this prehistoric behemoth, which lived up until around 2.6 million years ago, made the great white shark - which is less than a third of its size - look like a minnow.

For years, most artist illustrations of megalodon have shown it to be a huge, bulky predator because it is typically depicted as a scaled up version of the modern-day great white shark.

In reality, however, this enormous meat-eating fish may have been a lot longer and slimmer.

"Our study suggests that the modern great white shark may not necessarily serve as a good modern analogue for assessing at least certain aspects of its biology, including its size," said study lead author and palaeobiologist Prof Kenshu Shimada of DePaul University in Chicago."The reality is that we need the discovery of at least one complete megalodon skeleton to be more confident about its true size as well [as] its body form."

The researchers highlighted discrepencies with measurements of incomplete megalodon fossil vertebrae and the difference in jaw to vertebrae length ratio between the two species.

"The slender body would indicate that megalodon may not have been a powerful swimmer as much as the modern great white shark is," said Prof Shimada.

"As one of the largest carnivores that ever existed, deciphering the biology of megalodon is critical to understand the role large carnivores play in the context of the evolution of marine ecosystems and how its extinction influenced the development of the present-day ocean."

Source: The Guardian

Tags: Megalodon, Shark