Send up the skyrockets. Ring out the bells.
We celebrate a very special day in June. You may be forgiven for thinking I’m referring to “Father’s Day,” “Juneteenth,” or “Flag Day,” but you would be wrong. Since 2021, June 15 has been (ta da!) official National Megalodon Day in these United States. It is not, however, a holiday that closes the post office and the stock market.
Contrary to what you may have seen on TV, Megalodon, the largest predatory shark that ever terrorized the oceans, went extinct about 3 million years ago, and is not, therefore, likely to be the cause of any historic or current tragic mishaps at sea. It certainly could have been, though. Weighing up to 114 tons and growing to a maximum length of 67 feet, Megalodon swam at the top of the oceanic food chain during the Early Miocene to Pliocene epochs (approximately 23 million to 3.5 million years ago.) For comparison, the largest living fish, the whale shark, is 18 to 20 feet shorter, and the terrifying Great White Shark averages a measly 20 feet in length.
Picture, if you dare, a massive jaw, 8 to 11 feet wide, with 275 7-inch-long teeth in six tiers, attached to a body nearly the size of an 18-wheeler, bearing down on you at 11 miles an hour. Luckily for you, you are probably too puny to be of much culinary interest to an adult Megalodon. As the apex predator of the Cenozoic seas, Megalodon went for the big prey — whales, dolphins, and other pelagic sharks, including the Great White — none of which would have had much chance against a bite force of 40,000 pounds per square inch.
These teeth, incidentally, are what gives the animal its name. Megalodon means “big tooth.”
The beast was not averse to including seals, sea cows, and sea turtles on the menu. Smaller members of the genus and juveniles probably stuck mostly to fish in shallower waters. Alas, Megalodon was most likely not above eating others of its kind as well. To an animal that requires almost 100,000 calories a day, anything moving looks like food. Imagine the buildup of microplastics in their bodies, were they still gobbling up prey in today’s oceans!
Meg lived in temperate to sub-tropical seas. Some research suggests that it may have been, like other sharks, somewhat warm-blooded, and could inhabit chillier parts of the water world. Fossils are found everywhere except in the polar regions. Babies were birthed in warm water environments near all continents. Nurseries existed off the coasts of current day Maryland and Florida. Megalodon infants averaged 11 feet, twice the length of the average U.S. adult male.
Megalodon still excites the curiosity of oceanic paleontologists. About the time of its disappearance from the fossil record, the Earth and its seas became colder. Maybe that limited its habitat. Maybe its food source began to disappear; 55% of marine mammals, 35% of sea lions, 49% of sea turtles, 9% of sharks and 14 out of 20 baleen whale species became extinct towards the end of the Miocene.
Perhaps the species that remained were faster swimmers. Perhaps other sharks grew to larger sizes and became stronger competitors for the dwindling food supply.
Despite what we do know, there are still more questions than answers about this awesome animal, and so research goes on.
By next June, marine paleontologists will surely have ferreted out more Megalodon facts. This is what gets them up in the morning and gives them reason to celebrate.
Then, next June 15, party on.
Marion Kyde is a mycologist living in Tinicum Township. Her interests range across the biological spectrum from the tantalizing to the ridiculous. She lives in a conserved forest with a spouse, two cats, and a brilliant Havanese.
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