ZME SCIENCE - The Megalodon, an ancient shark that dominated the oceans millions of years ago, has often been portrayed as a monstrous, oversized great white shark. This image, perpetuated by popular movies like “The Meg,” has been ingrained in the public consciousness. However, a new study is turning this perception on its head.
Formally known as Otodus megalodon, this prehistoric giant lived roughly 15 to 3.6 million years ago, inhabiting nearly every ocean. Popular science has long depicted it as a hulking beast, stretching 50 to 65 feet. This makes it the largest fish ever known.
Phillip Sternes, co-lead author and a Ph.D. candidate at the University of California, Riverside, added that “the new study strongly suggests that the body form of O. megalodon was not merely a larger version of the modern great white shark.”