The largest shark ever existed on Earth
The largest shark ever existed on earth. “Megalodon” is the common name for Otodus megalodon, a truly gigantic predatory shark that went extinct long ago. Thanks to urban legends, and the popularity of movies like “The Meg,” Megalodon is once again in the public eye. But what is fact, and what is fiction? In this video we hope to help dispel the myths about this giant prehistoric shark.
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The megalodon, which went extinct millions of years ago, was the largest shark ever to prowl the oceans and one of the largest fish on record. Like other sharks, they had streamlined yet powerful bodies built to efficiently cut through the water. Their tailfin undulated side to side and they breathed through gill slits on either side of their head. The scientific name, Carcharocles megalodon, means “giant tooth,” and for very good reason, its massive teeth are almost three times larger than the teeth of a modern great white shark. The megalodon’s fossilized vertebrae and teeth give scientists major clues about what the creature was like and when it died off. Although some estimates of size can be quite contradictory.
Megalodon size estimates vary depending on the method used, with maximum total length estimates ranging from 14.2 to 20.3 meters. In comparison, large great white sharks are generally around 6 meters in length. A 2020 study, looking at dimensions of the modern great white, mako, and Lamna sharks suggested a 16 meter megalodon would have had a 4.65 meter long head, 1.41 meter tall gill slits, a 1.62 meter tall dorsal fin, 3.08 meter long pectoral fins, and a 3.85 meter tall tail fin. Mature male megalodon may have had a body mass of 12.6 to 33.9 metric tons, and mature females may have been 27.4 to 59.4 metric tons. A 2015 study linking shark size and typical swimming speed estimated that megalodon would typically have swam at 18 kilometers per hour, assuming that its body mass was 48 metric tons.
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