Most of us have an image of the Megalodon as a monster that preys on Jason Statham and looks like a giant great white shark, but that may not be the case. A new study has re-examined fossil evidence and suggests that megalodon was more elongated than we thought.
The idea of a giant shark cruising the seas millions of years ago is pretty terrifying - so of course we all love imagining what it might have looked like. Since Jaws is one of the greatest movie villains of our time, pop culture has amplified it to the point where it can go on a submarine-like rampage.
Some scientists also believe that this is more or less what the megalodon looked like. Like sharks, the megalodon's skeleton was mostly made of cartilage, so we don't have much fossil remains to draw from other than a bunch of huge, sharp teeth and a few vertebrae. This means scientists can only estimate its size and shape based on comparisons with live sharks, with the great white being a common choice. But a new study challenges that image based on analysis of fossilized megalodon vertebrae found in Belgium.
Dr. Mikael Siversson, co-author of the study, said: "The mismatch between the massive size of Megalodon in published paleontological reconstructions and the surprisingly small diameter at the center of the species' largest known vertebra has troubled me for a long time. The fact that the species' vertebrae are unusually slender is inconsistent with previous reconstructions that described Megalodon as a stout shark."
The team says the great white shark's back bones are not only thinner than expected, but also longer. Using measurements from previous studies, the researchers calculated the relationship between the largest vertebrae and overall length of 16 great white sharks. They then measured the largest vertebrae on the megalodon's spine and estimated its total length if it had the proportions of a great white shark. The results showed that the megalodon was 9.2 meters (30.2 feet) long.
But there's a problem - the megalodon's spine itself is only 11.1 meters (36.4 feet) long, and may not even be complete. The team says this suggests the ancient shark had different proportions than the great white shark and should have been longer and more slender. In fact, even the highest estimate of 20 meters (65.6 feet) may not be accurate enough, they said.
The paper also breaks down the methods and hypotheses of previous studies, but in short, the megalodon probably didn't resemble a giant great white shark. As for what it looks like, no one can say for sure.
"While we have a good idea of the size of the oral cavity from the associated teeth (which appear to include the position of all the teeth), other anatomical features, such as the shape of the fins and tail, are not known," Dr. Siverson said. "Going forward, any meaningful discussion of the anatomy of this shark, beyond the size and robustness of its jaws, will require the discovery of a more or less complete skeleton."
The research was published in the journal Palaeontologia Electronica.