When the first movie of the infamous great white shark, “JAWS”, was first released in cinemas, viewers were shocked and appalled by the huge blood-thirsty monster that seemed to tear at anyone and anything in its path, and gave the standard great white shark a reputation as a blood-thirsty killer.
Well, scary as the great white shark may be, there is just one huge prehistoric predator so huge and intimating that, if it were to be placed side by side with the cinematic predator, the great white shark would have be surmised as nothing more than an oversized goldfish.
Megalodon: Terror of the Seas
Cue the king of terror: Megalodon, or Big Meg, a prehistoric shark that lived somewhere between 16 million to 1.6 million years ago.
Much of the shark’s anatomy is unknown, due to the fact that sharks have cartilage instead of bones. As a result, few fossilized remains of this one-time ocean terror have ever been recorded.
While lack of fossil evidence has hampered research on this now-extinct beast, information gleaned from fossilized megalodon teeth indicates that this mysterious monster is far larger than any sea predator we know today.
The average size of a great white shark is somewhere between the region of 4 to 4.8m, with a displacement of 680 to 1,100 kg. Larger specimens of 6m and 1900kg have been recorded.
Judging from records of fossilized megalodon teeth, which can measure up to 168mm long, an average megalodon may measure from 12 to 16 meter. That is at least three times the length of an average great white, and it is estimated to weight in at 20 to 30 tons.
Food for the Belly?
A creature of megalodon’s size would certainly require huge quantities of food, and judging by the stockiness and sheer size of megalodon’s teeth, it is not difficult to imagine the type of prey it would most likely have hunted – whales.
Given that the appearance of this shark would have coincided with the evolution of large whales, megalodon’s diet would have been consistent with its modern day predecessor, the Great White shark.
While great whites have rarely been caught hunting large adult whales, the megalodon would have little or no problems doing so, given its sheer size and power.
Extinction Theories
Exactly how, and why, the megalodon became extinct, is a subject of much debate.
One theory is that the appearance of the orca, or killer whale, may have something to do with megalodon’s extinction. Killer whales operate in packs of up to 60 members, and operate within themselves a intricate system of hunting and communication techniques. Like the great whites of today, megalodons may have been lone predators, congregating perhaps only for mating and rearing their young. This solitude may have stood them at a disadvantage, and they could have been driven away from fertile hunting groups by the more sophisticated orcas.
Another reason may be that the megalodon’s main prey, Cetotherium, a species of prehistoric whales, headed off towards extinction, and this may have caused a gradual decline and ultimate end to the megalodon line.
Could the Odd Megalodon Be Lurking Around in the World’s Oceans?
Given the sheer volume of water in our world’s oceans, we have yet to explore even 1% of the earth’s waters.
From time to time, scientists have discovered creatures thought to have been extinct. For example, coelacanth, a prehistoric fish thought to have become extinct, was caught in South Africa in 1938. Considered a living fossil of sorts, it has fully functioning lungs, and is regarded as a missing link between fish and amphibians.
Given the propensity to throw up surprises, it may come as no surprise to some that some day, a megalodon may just be found washed up on the shores.
And, if that day does happen, you could bet your last dollar that no sane person will be taking to the world’s oceans with anything smaller than an aircraft carrier.
