What is a Megalodon
Megalodon Scale
Scientists have speculated for many years on how the megalodon died out. It is a possibility of many things, or everything together. Because of shrinking oceans and changing habitat, or currents changing and ocean temperatures fluctuating, the Megalodon may have simply run out of livable areas, and the food sources could have changed as well. They could have become desperate for food and ultimately resulted in cannibalism and this too could have been the downfall of the megalodon. There was also the coming of the great white, and this shark could have capitalized off of its superior body and literally ate its way into the top of the food chain nudging out its much larger cousin. Regardless, we are left with not only lots of questions, but we find there incredible teeth throughout the world reaching lengths in excess of 50 feet and weighing in at many tons dwarfing man, this was no doubt one of earths most awesome predators. The remains are mainly dentition which constantly fell out as there teeth rotated forward in there jaw. Upper teeth are the most commonly found and the most common size range seems to be around 3 to 5 inches in length from root corner to the tip. Lowers are much harder to find in most species of sharks because these teeth are anchored in more than the uppers and serve more to hold there prey as the upper teeth rip and tear. The largest tooth ever found was about 7 3/16 inches long. There have been many of them repaired and offered as 7 inch teeth, however, in the 30 or so years I have been around sharks teeth, I have seen 3 real seven inch teeth. My largest personal find, is a tooth that measured 6 7/8 and the tip, and root were broken. It would have literally been about 7 3/8 if it was complete. This was the largest tooth I have ever seen or owned. The late Vito Bartucci bought this tooth and put it in his world record jaw many years ago. Sadly, Vito died while diving one day several years ago.
Vito "Megalodon" Bartucci
embed video powered by Union Development