Megalodon Sightings: Is the Megalodon Shark Still Alive
Updated on June 6, 2016
Megalodon sightings prove the prehistoric shark is still alive today
The Megalodon Shark
Alleged
Megalodon shark sightings over the years have led to the legend of a
massive, prehistoric shark that still patrols the oceans of our world.
Carcharodon Megalodon was once a real shark — the most formidable
predator the world have ever seen — but modern science claims it went
extinct long ago. The idea that it might still be alive today is both
terrifying and fascinating. Even though most marine biologists and shark researchers tell us it's
impossible, it's nevertheless interesting to wonder if and how a huge
predatory shark could still exist somewhere in the vastness of the sea.
At a maximum length of up to 60 feet, the Megalodon was the largest
shark that ever lived, a wrecking machine of teeth and muscle that
preyed on adult whales. It's hard to imagine there could still be a
viable population of such creatures out there somewhere, living
undetected. Still, there are occasional reports of massive sharks thirty feet
long or more from around the world. Are these real-life accounts of
modern Megalodon sightings? If not, what are these witnesses seeing? Is
it possible mainstream science has it wrong, and is it still out there? In this article, we'll take a look at some compelling evidence and
stories that suggest Megalodon is still with us. In the end, it's up to
you to decide: Is there enough proof to support the idea that the
Megalodon shark is still alive? If you are mostly interested in learning more about the real prehistoric Megalodon shark, check out:
There
has been a lot of controversy surrounding the Megalodon shark in recent
years. This has in turn led to a great deal of confusion about
Megalodon encounters in modern times, as well as the real creature that
swam in our oceans for millions of years. Unfortunately, some people
have interpreted this misinformation to mean Megalodon is entirely made
up. That is far from the case. Rest assured Megalodon really did exist. One reason we know this is
because of an abundant supply of fossil teeth it left behind. These
teeth are much larger than those of any living shark, including the
great white, and from them researchers have been able to determine the
size, weight and even some of the habits of the real Megalodon shark. So, when we talk about Megalodon we are looking at it from two
different points of view: Paleontology and Cryptozoology. I think it is
important to distinguish the difference.
The shark of paleontology can be studied by looking at the
fossil record and living sharks in order to puzzle out what the real
Megalodon may have been like. From a paleontology perspective, this
shark is officially extinct, but that doesn’t make it any less
interesting.
The idea of a living Megalodon is a stance taken by
cryptozoologists, and it is not supported by mainstream science. Why
would anybody think this is possible? That is the question examined in
this article, and later we will get into how and why people think Meg
could still be around.
I encourage readers to consider Megalodon from both points of
view.But let's get down to the real point of this article. Could this
prehistoric predator still be out there even today?
How Could Megalodon Be Alive Today?
We
know of the real Megalodon shark only from fossil records and preserved
teeth. Because shark skeletons consist mostly of cartilage, these are
the only parts that fossilize. No living or dead specimen has ever been
recovered in modern times. Also, there are no "official" sightings on
record.
So what makes us think it could still be around? More importantly, has anything like this ever happened before? In fact, there is precedence for bizarre marine creatures turning up
when the odds are stacked against them. Some of them, like the Megalodon
shark, were once thought extinct, or believed to only be myths.
Megamouth Shark: The incredible Megamouth Shark
is another huge sea creature that can grow up to nearly 20 feet in
length, but it was not discovered until 1976. This beast eluded
researchers for so long because it lives in deep water, and comes closer
to the surface only at night. This, some researchers speculate, could
be the same behavior that makes Megalodon so tough to spot.
Coelacanth: The Coelacanth is
an even stranger case. This bizarre fish was thought to have gone
extinct 65 million years ago, until they were discovered in 1938, live
and well, off the coast of South Africa. The Coelacanth is a prehistoric
fish, referred to as the Living Fossil. While they're not giants like
Megalodon, the Megamouth, or the Giant Squid, they do still reach over
six feet in length.
Giant Squid: Giant Squid is a huge creature,
reaching up to 30 feet in length, dwelling in the deepest parts of the
ocean. Though science eventually knew of its existence from bodies
washed ashore and scars left on the bodies of whales, no live adult
specimen was ever caught on film until 2004. Now we know much more about
these creatures, and that there is an even larger monster squid out
there.
Colossal Squid: The Colossal Squid is an enormous
real-life sea monster, with the largest specimens weighing over half a
ton. Even though it was discovered in 1925, we still know very little
about this beast. Colossal and Giant squid sightings by ancient sailors
are probably what led to legends of the Kraken sea monster.
A Lazarus Taxon is a species that appears to have gone extinct, but then is found alive again. Usually, as is the case with the Coelacanth, there is a small remnant
population somewhere that had gone unnoticed, at least by modern
science. Often, locals know about the animals, but because a biologist
hasn't confirmed it the species remains officially extinct. If such an ancient and strange species like the Coelacanth could
endure without detection for so long, why can't the Megalodon be alive
out there somewhere after all these years?
How Big Was the Megalodon Shark? Here's Megalodon vs the Whale
Shark (blue) and Great White Shark (green). (Image: Matt Martyniuk
[GFDL or CC-BY-SA-3.0-2.5-2.0-1.0], via Wikimedia Commons) | Source
Historic Megalodon Sightings and Evidence
There
are a handful of well-documented pieces of evidence and testimony that
suggest Megalodon is still alive. Here are a few of the more well-known
stories:
Huge Teeth Found by HMS Challenger: In 1875,
two Megalodon teeth were dredged up during a deep-sea expedition by the
HMS Challenger, dated only 10,000 - 15,000 years old. If the methods
used were accurate, this would mean it went extinct much more recently
than previously believed, and make it a contemporary of modern humans.
Ten thousand years is only a blink of an eye in the world of
paleontology. It does not take a great imagination to think the
Megalodon shark may have survived the past 10,000 years undetected in
the depths of the oceans.
Fishermen Terrified by Giant Shark: In
1918 an Australian naturalist named David Stead recorded events when
local fisherman refused to go back out to sea after an unbelievably
massive shark had demolished their gear and taken their catch. These
were experienced men of the sea, familiar with whales and large sharks,
but whatever they had seen had frightened them so much that they refused
to work. According to Stead, they described it as between 35 and 90
meters long and pure white in color. These proportions seem
unbelievable. Could a shark really grow to that size? Were these men
exaggerating? Or, were they just confused?
Massive Shark Threatens 55-Foot Fishing Boat:
In the 1960s, the captain of a 55-foot fishing ship reported that a
white shark at least as long as the boat passed by while they sat at
anchor. The crew refused to officially discuss the sighting, but the
Captain gave his account. An experienced sailor, the Captain would have
been able to recognize a whale if that is what it had been, but he
claimed it was indeed a giant shark. Are stories such as this one based
on real encounters, or are they just products of the imaginations of
sailors who have been at sea too long?
Sharkzilla!
Recent Sightings and Anecdotal Evidence
Unfortunately,
when it comes to more recent sightings, the casual researcher has to
weed through a whole bunch of nonsense to get to any stories with
credibility. YouTube is awash with clips of supposed Megalodon
encounters — all fake, of course. Megalodon has firmly planted itself in the realm of cryptozoology,
and few marine biologists and shark researchers take the creature
seriously in the modern day. Occasionally a stray report will wash up of
a larger-than-normal shark spotted somewhere. But, given that Great
Whites can theoretically grow in excess of 20 feet, it’s certainly
possible that these are misidentified animals. Most marine biologists
would be thrilled enough to discover a 20-foot Great White! But there are at least a few interesting tidbits for consideration:
Megalodon Monsterquest Episode: Back in 2009, the History Channel show Monsterquest
visited the Sea of Cortez where massive sharks have been reported for
years. These beasts are allegedly three times larger than the biggest
Great White sharks in the area, and known for decimating the local
marine mammal populations. The Monsterquest team failed to find
Megalodon, but many still believe that if this giant shark is still
around, this would be a prime location for finding it.
The Monster of Bird Island: In 2012, on an episode of the show Shark Wranglers called Monster of Bird Island,
shark researchers interviewed a group of South African fisherman who
claimed there was a huge shark in the area as big as their boat. The
boat appeared to be thirty or forty feet long. Was this a Megalodon
shark these fisherman had witnessed? Later in the episode, one of the
researchers told a tale of a 30-foot shark he had seen when he was younger.
The Discovery Channel and Megalodon Lives
This
concept of a living Megalodon has spawned some interesting movies and
novels, not to mention caught the attention of shark enthusiasts, both
amateur and professional. Even the Discovery Channel featured a special
on the Megalodon for Shark Week 2012, complete with a massive recreation
of the monster. The next year they went on to offer an even more artificial rendition of the creature, leading to the Shark Week 2013 fiasco. The docudrama called Megalodon: The Monster Shark Lives ignited a world-wide interest, largely because so many people believed the footage and actors in the film were real. For Shark Week 2014, the Discovery Channel tried again with a rehashed version of Megalodon Lives.
However, the public had caught on by this point, and the same people
who were blown away a year earlier were now bent on finding facts. That's good. Megalodon is a creature worth exploring, and whether or
not it still survives today it is one of the most fascinating real-world
monsters that ever lived.
What was Megalodon Really Like?
Though
we think of the Megalodon as a giant Great White Shark, many
researchers believe it may not have resembled one at all. Indeed, some
say they were not even closely related. Did it act like a Great White? Most researchers say it was probably
similar, but of course there is no way to be sure. So when someone spots
a giant Great White Shark, what are the odds it could really be a relic
Megalodon? From this perspective, there could be countless undocumented Megalodon sightings throughout history. So what was Megalodon shark really like? Could the dramatization in the video below be accurate?
Megalodon Shark Attack
Giant Teeth and Massive Jaws
Like
the Great White, Megalodon had serrated teeth. While we think of modern
sharks as formidable predators we surely wouldn't want to cross paths
with, the Megalodon would have been in a whole new class of terror. Even
after countless centuries, some fossilized Megalodon teeth are still
sharp to the touch. We can only imagine what they were capable doing to a
large prey item like a whale, let alone a human. The largest Megalodon teeth can be seven inches long — the size of a
grown-man's hand. It was the largest and most highly evolved in a
lineage of megatoothed sharks. Though they look like larger versions of Great White Shark teeth,
paleontologists point to slight differences in the Megalodon teeth and
its ancestors as proof that the Megalodon shark is not closely related
to the Great White. This would put it in the genus Carcharocles rather than the Great White's Carcharodon. This is a matter still up for debate.
With jaws like this the Megalodon Shark would have made short work
of anything in the ocean, including whales and giant sea turtles. | Source Sea World
A Real Megalodon Tooth Found
A Powerful Bite Force
Regardless
of its heritage, this shark had a set of chompers never seen in the
animal kingdom before or since. Researchers have calculated that this
massive shark may have had a bite force of 18 tons! A T-Rex had a bite
force of only one-third that. The strongest biter in our world today is
the saltwater crocodile, and they only come in around 3700 pounds. It's clear that the teeth and jaws were made for destruction.
Interestingly, some researchers say it may have bitten off the fins of
its prey before finishing it off. That makes the Megalodon tooth arsenal
not only powerful, but capable of a certain amount of precision as
well.
Behavior and Hunting Technique
Much
like the modern Great White, Megalodon was probably an ambush predator
that took its prey by surprise, either from below or by approaching at
great speeds. This would have meant it was a very active shark, not some
lumbering giant like the Whale Shark. It was a coastal shark, hunting
offshore. Again, like our modern Great White. Megalodon would have been found in just about every ocean of the
world, preying on whales, dolphins and other marine mammals, and even
giant sea turtles. In short, it would have eaten just about anything it
wanted. If it were really around, it would not be hard to spot. If still alive today, it’s easy to see that all of the above can no
longer be true. A massive, 60-foot shark hunting whales close to shore
would surely be well-known, not to mention widely feared. So if Meg is
still around, it must have changed its behaviors drastically. Check out the video of Great White sharks hunting below and imagine
the Megalodon preying on massive whales in the same manner! It must have
been amazing!
Nurseries
Scientists
think that the Megalodon young lived in shark nurseries like Great
Whites do. These are areas, usually close to shore, where young sharks
can grow and feed in relative safety. Megalodon young may have started
out eating fish or other small prey items, and then moved on to larger
prey as they got bigger. So where are the baby Megalodon sharks? They may be living at great
depths like their parents, or it could be possible that they they are so
rare and so similar to the Great White that when they are spotted they
are simply assumed to be adult Great White sharks.
Megalodon was three times the size of the largest Great White Sharks!
The Livyatan Whale: A Formidable Rival?
It's
pretty clear that the Megalodon Shark was the most powerful beast in
the ancient Miocene ocean, but could there have been another creature
just as fearsome that gave Meg a run for its money? The recently discovered Livyatan whale
was as big as Megalodon, with teeth over a foot long. It competed with
Megalodon for food, but what happened when these two prehistoric
heavyweights met face to face?
Why Did Megalodon Go Extinct?
If
this shark was such a ferocious predator, why did it die out?
Unfortunately, even the strongest creatures are no match for Mother
Nature. While Meg inhabited every ocean of the world, the planet was a
much warmer place back then. As the environment entered a cooling period, sea levels began to fall
and currents shifted, causing not only a cooling of the ocean itself,
but also a shift in the food supply. Theoretically, the Megalodon shark
either couldn’t adapt to the colder climate, the food issues, or both.
There is also evidence that the situation may have been complicated by
the evolution of other large, predatory marine creatures which may have
infringed on Megalodon’s niche.
Does Megalodon Live in the Mariana Trench?
For
Meg to still be still alive, it would have had to adapt to colder
temperatures, a different breeding pattern, and greatly different food
sources. Some speculate that Megalodon populations may have survived in the Mariana Trench and other deep parts of the ocean. Certainly we know that whales and giant squids venture very deep, so
it is conceivable that Megalodon would have the food it requires. In
fact, recent research on Great White sharks shows they may dive fairly
deep in search of food. If Meg followed similar habits, perhaps it could
have made the adaptations to deep-ocean life much easier than some
experts suggest. Unfortunately, the larger an animal is, and the more specific its
niche in the environment, the harder a time it has in adapting to
environmental changes. It's unlikely that the vast majority of these
sharks would have been able to adapt to a major shortage in their food
supply. An animal that evolved to feed on large marine mammals would
have a tough time switching to oceanic fish, for example. However, what is conceivable is that a small population which had
already made some adaptations to a different food sources and lifestyle
(such as diving to great depths and feeding on squid) could have
survived the die-off and maintained a small, remnant population over the
centuries.
The Verdict
All
of these Megalodon sightings and stories are compelling, but are they
really enough to suggest that this massive shark is still alive? Is it
still out there somewhere, stalking the oceans of the world? Is there
any reason to worry about going in the water at the beach? If it makes you feel any better, mainstream science is unmoved by the
evidence supporting the possibility of Megalodon’s existence today.
Still, the idea of this monster shark out there patrolling the ocean
deep is fascinating to imagine. There is still so much of the ocean left
unexplored, the possibilities are almost endless.
The Megalodon Shark The World Biggest Shark in The World
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