For millions of years, Megalodons (Otodus megalodon) dominated the oceans as the top predators. Then came the great white sharks. New studies of shark teeth show that both sharks hunted the same prey, which may have pushed the megalodons to extinction.
Megalodons lived around 23 million years ago; the time and the reason why they went extinct are still unclear. They lived from 2.6 million years ago to 3.5 million years ago, which is around the time when Great White Sharks appeared.
The way scientists discovered the two sharks fed on the same prey is to look at the zinc in their teeth. Plant eaters usually have a lot of zinc-66, and animals higher on the pecking order have more zinc-64. New studies show that Megalodon’s and Great White’s teeth had very similar zinc contents. This suggests that their diets overlapped. They both ate oceanic mammals, like whales and seals.
However, just because they ate similar fooddoesn’t mean that Great White sharks are the ones to blame for the extinction of megalodons. There are many reasons, for example, a fall in oceanic mammal populations and changing ocean currents. So just because Great Whites didn’t help the Megalodons survive, they aren’t the only reason they went extinct.
Megalodons lived around 23 million years ago; the time and the reason why they went extinct are still unclear. They lived from 2.6 million years ago to 3.5 million years ago, which is around the time when Great White Sharks appeared.
The way scientists discovered the two sharks fed on the same prey is to look at the zinc in their teeth. Plant eaters usually have a lot of zinc-66, and animals higher on the pecking order have more zinc-64. New studies show that Megalodon’s and Great White’s teeth had very similar zinc contents. This suggests that their diets overlapped. They both ate oceanic mammals, like whales and seals.
However, just because they ate similar fooddoesn’t mean that Great White sharks are the ones to blame for the extinction of megalodons. There are many reasons, for example, a fall in oceanic mammal populations and changing ocean currents. So just because Great Whites didn’t help the Megalodons survive, they aren’t the only reason they went extinct.
