Megalodon Facts and Information - All about Megalodon Sharks
History, Evolution, Fossil Shark Teeth Identification, Fossil Examples, Fossil Hunting Locations, Megalodon vs whales, and more!

Megalodon Tooth Size vs Great White Tooth vs T-Rex Tooth.

With teeth that could reach over 7 inches, and a body more massive than a T-Rex, Megatooth sharks, particularly Carcharocles Megalodon, are undoubtedly the most infamous of all prehistoric sharks. This shark could eat Jaws in one bite!

By now, most paleontologists believe the Megatooth shark lineage dates back to the giant mackerel shark of the Paleocene, Otodus obliquus. Otodus was the top predator of the Paleocene oceans. Although Otodus became extinct somewhere in the Eocene, Otodus was not a dead-end link. Throughout the Eocene Otodus teeth became more and more serrated. The Eocene Tologaysor (say that 3 times in a row) formation in Kazakhstan shows this transition nicely. Each zone of the formation has Otodus teeth that are slightly more serrated over geologic time until they start looking like an early Carcharocles tooth.

Once the Otodus teeth became mostly serrated, paleontologists renamed the serrated Otodus genus to the Carcharocles genus, and thus the Carcharocles genus arose. Where the genus transition occurs depends on which paleontologist you ask. For instance, one transitional form, O. aksuaticus is called C. askuaticus by some; others regard C. auriculatus to be O. auriculatus, and so forth. Regardless of which transitional form is officially called a Carcharocles is a moot point. The point is that it is clear the Megatooth shark lineage (Carcharocles) was born from the Otodus lineage.

Notice, nothing was said about the Great White Shark, Carcharodon Carcharias. That's because the Megalodon is NOT related to the Great White Shark. Their evolutionary lines are very different. To learn about Great White shark origins and evolution, click here to go to the Great White Shark Gallery page.

Over time the Megatooth shark went through slight morphological changes. The teeth became more regularly serrated, the Otodus cusps got smaller, the crown got broader, and the overall size increased. Paleontologists assigned each slight tooth change of the Megatooth shark to a new Carcharocles species. The Megatooth shark reached its high mark as C. megalodon, a shark of monstrous proportions. The megalodon shark became extinct during the Pliocene and left no next of kin; the megalodon became too large and too specialized for its own good. It is a dead-end link on the tree of life.
A very rough chronology of Megatooth species, leading to the megalodon is shown on the following table:

Rough Time Period Shark Name Paleocene O. obliquus Early Eocene O. mugodzharicus Early Eocene C. aksuaticus Middle Eocene C. auriculatus Late Eocene/Oligocene C. angustidens Late Oligocene/Miocene C. subauriculatus Miocene/Pliocene C. megalodon

It's important to note that each species is the Megatooth shark, with a slight change in tooth form over different periods of time. As a result, there are many teeth that are a cross between two species. For example, in the early Miocene, C. subauriculatus have large cusps, where by late Miocene the cusps are very small. Some paleontologists may further subdivide the many C. species, but it's important to remember all of the species are the same shark evolving over time. So don't worry if you find a tooth with very small cusps, and can't tell if it's a juvenile megalodon or a subauriculatus; it's a Megatooth shark, leave it at that!

The megatooth shark was clearly a top predator of its time. So, how big did a megalodon get? Megalodon shark teeth reached sizes over 7 inches. With that said, no one is sure what the body of the shark looked like. Therefore it is difficult to say how big the megalodon shark could get.

Years ago, lengths of 100 feet were speculated. Today, this length has been vastly shortened. Using tooth and jaw reconstructions, paleontologists have calculated possible size estimates. Some estimates give a megalodon a maximum length of around lengths around 54 feet (16.5 m), while other estimates are a bit lower, around 43 feet (13 m). The true size may lie somewhere in between. Either way, it was an impressive animal!
(Click here to go to the megalodon tooth size vs body size chart).

Here are some size comparisons of a megalodon shark:

The megalodon shark teeth are unmistakable. They are big, robust, and serrated. However, identifying a specific species is a bit more difficult. Generally, knowing the formation, and thus the time period the tooth was found in, helps tremendously.

For example, if the tooth was found in an Eocene formation, its probably C. auriculatus, or C. aksuaticus, depending on the serrations. If it was found in Oligocene deposits, it's probably C. angustidens. Miocene formations would most likely have C. subauriculatus or C. megalodon, depending on if there are cusps on adult teeth, and a Pliocene formation would have C. megalodon.

Generally speaking, each successor species has the following changes: smaller cusps (no cusps for adult C. megalodon), a broader tooth form, a larger size, and more regular serrations. Juvenile C. megalodon sometimes have cusps, and therefore look identical to C. subauriculatus. Also remember, depending on the exact age and formation, a tooth may look more like a transition between two species.

The only genus Carcharocles may look similar to is that of Carcharodon. Carcharodon carcharias, the Great White shark, may look similar to the Megatooth shark. There are, however, some straightforward differences. First, Great Whites only occur in Miocene and Pliocene deposits, so they can be found with C. subauriculatus teeth and C. megalodon teeth. However, compared to Megatooth shark teeth, Great Whites are much thinner and smaller with less robust roots. Also Great White teeth do not have a bourlette, whereas Megatooth sharks have a very wide and noticeable one. Finally, Great White teeth have very coarse and irregular serrations, compared with the regular serrations of the Megatooth sharks.


The following fossil shark tooth Identification diagrams show three of the megatooth species, Carhcarocles megalodon, C. subauriculatus, and C. angustidens.
On the fossil tooth identification images below, the lingual sides of the teeth are the side facing the tongue, and are usually shown as the "display" side. The labial side is the side facing the front of the mouth. Labial sides are usually the smoother sides.