The Megalodon Shark

Officially, the megalodon is extinct. This extinction is relatively "recent" even at the accepted date of around one and a half million years ago. However there have also been claims that megalodons might have survived until a mere 10,000 years or so back. If that's true then it's a much smaller jump to believing that they could still be around today.

At the time of writing (July 2006) a megalodon movie based on Steve Alten's novel Meg is in production. Meg is expected to be released in 2008.

What Is The Megalodon Shark?

The megalodon was a carnivore that would hunt other creatures in the ocean. It probably used its huge tail or flippers to stun its prey. Based on fossils, its teeth alone are some 6 inches or more long and its jaws around 6 feet wide. That sort of hunter could give even a whale a run for its money and it's been suggested that whale meat was one of its favourites.

Does The Megalodon Still Live?

There have been numerous sightings of unusual giant sharks, possibly megalodons. There are also many globsters (weird unidentified marine corpses) that add weight to the idea. However there have been no confirmed megalodon sightings.

The most famous megalodon sightings were collected by the Australian naturalist David Stead. In the early 20th century he collected reports of a gigantic white shark that had terrorised the fishermen of Port Stephens. Since most of these eye witnesses are anonymous their accounts are often dismissed by sceptics as being anecdotal and of little value. However such reports - whilst not proving the existence of the megalodon - make this mystery an area of interest to many cryptozoologists.

Remember the coelocanth...