2 minute read
The Megalodon
Next Article
“The shark became extinct around 2.6 million years ago when the whole planet started to cool down. ”
— Jordan
AISM Magazine | 51
The megalodon
_____Nicolas_____
What is the megalodon?
The megalodon is the biggest shark to ever exist. Megalodon fossils can date back to 20 million years ago. The sharks roamed the seas for 13 million years and before becoming extinct 3.6 million years ago. The megalodon is three times longer than the world record largest great white shark, it can grow from 15 to 18 meters long. They are so large that their teeth are 18 centimeters long. The meaning of megalodon is "large tooth". Large shark, large appetite. The megalodon ate a lot of things for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It would eat around a ton of seafood a day to stay healthy. This would include things like the humpback whale to dolphins. With how large the teeth on the megalodon were, it would have to eat smaller whales or even large fish in order for the megalodon to eat something like a whale it would have to open its mouth to as large as 2.7 to 3.4 meters.
Teeth. Its jaws are lined with 276 serrated teeth allowing the shark to pretty much destroy any sea animal that gets in its way. The teeth of a megalodon can grow to sizes of 7 inches. The largest shark tooth in the world is 7.48 inches.
When did it go extinct? The shark became extinct around 2.6 million years ago when the whole planet started to cool down. This was one of the biggest weaknesses that the shark had when the planet cooled it kill many different sea creatures. Scientists say that about a third of large marine animals were killed because of the difference in temperature many come from the tropic waters where the water is warmer. This is where the megalodon hung around and ate a lot of the animals that live in those waters when they all died the shark couldn't eat as much as it needed to survive.
AISM Magazine | 52
Citations:
_____Nicolas_____
Davis, Josh. “Megalodon: The Truth about the Largest Shark That Ever Lived.” Natural History Museum, The Trustees of The Natural History Museum, London, www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/megalodon--the-truth-about-the-largest-shark-that-ever-lived.htm l. Accessed 4 June 2020.
“10 Killer Megalodon Shark Facts.” FossilEra, www.fossilera.com/pages/megalodon. Accessed 4 June 2020.
W, Kate. “Ficheiro:Megalodon Teeth.Jpg.” Wikipedia, 27 Dec. 2008, pt.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ficheiro:Megalodon_teeth.jpg.
AISM Magazine | 53
