When did megalodons exist?
These giant predatory sharks were prowling the ocean between 20 million years and 3.6 million years ago. Palaeontologists can trace the evolutionary history of megalodons back at least 100 million years.
Are megalodons related to great white sharks?
No. Previously, megalodons were named Carcharodon megalodon, which placed them in the same genus as great white sharks. Palaeontologists later decided they weren’t so closely related and shifted them to a different group, renaming them Otodus megalodon.
What did they look like?
Megalodons are often depicted as enormous great white sharks, but in fact they looked rather different. They likely had a shorter nose than great whites, a flatter jaw and very long pectoral fins that helped support their extra weight in the water.
How big were they compared to animals we’re familiar with today?
No complete fossilised megalodon skeleton has ever been found, and so size estimates are based on their teeth, which were up to 18cm (7in) long. Experts generally agree that these giants could grow to between 15 and 18m (50-60ft) long, which is comparable to whale sharks, and roughly three times the size of the great white sharks of today.
What did megalodons eat?
Their sharp, serrated teeth show that megalodons were meat eaters. They were top predators that hunted dolphins and fishes, including other sharks. Fossilised whale bones have been found with cut marks of megalodon teeth, and tips of broken teeth lodged in them, showing that the giant sharks were whale hunters too. Their enormous jaws were up to 3.4m (11ft) wide and they had one of the most powerful bites of any predator.
Where did they live?
Megalodons lived all around the ocean in tropical and subtropical waters. A recent study suggested they grew to the biggest sizes in cooler waters.
Could a megalodon really still be alive somewhere?
Sorry Meg fans. It’s extremely unlikely that such large, active predators still exist in the ocean and haven’t been seen.