Research come out last year that divulge the mighty megalodon was indeed the ocean giant we conceive it to be . At around16 meters(52 foot ) long with fin as long as an adult human ’s body , theydwarfed other fishin the ocean when they were alive . Now , a new subject field published in the journalHistorical Biologyhas claimed that these sea giants ’ progeny were also behemoth in their own way , making their first few stern swishes in the unresolved sea at a sizing already bigger than most adult world .
The study was investigating the increment pattern and spirit expectancy of megalodon , Otodus megalodon , to disgorge light on their reproductive biota . " As one of the with child carnivore that ever exist on Earth , deciphering such growth parameters of O. megalodon is critical to understand the role large carnivores play in the linguistic context of the organic evolution of maritime ecosystems , ” wrote paleobiologist at DePaul University in Chicago and lead author of the studyDr Kenshu Shimadain astatement .
Using figure tomography ( CT ) read technology , Shimada and fellow worker were able to look at ' growth bands ' in megalodon vertebral specimens , house in the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences in Brussels . These bands are interchangeable to tree diagram rings , with each band representing another year in the Pisces ’ lifetime . The results give away the vertebra of a shark estimated to be nine meters long had 46 band , meaning it was 46 years quondam when it died .
This information could be used to back - calculate the shark ’s organic structure size at birth , which tell the investigator that it was a wee bonny megalodon measuring around 2 meters ( 6.6 feet ) when it came into the world . They posit that this suggests Megalodon reach live birth and that these Pisces were capable of snacking on their sib while hold off to be born . The sinister practice is known as oophagy or intrauterine cannibalism , and is seen in all extant lamniform sharks , says that study . A famous story amongshark biologistsdescribes the moment a scientist was take apart a dead female Panthera tigris shark who wasbitten by a cannibalistic embryothat had outlive inside the oviduct . If the finding are correct , it could mean that megalodon baby were the largest ever baby shark .
Megalodon is a pop coinage among shark fans , on a regular basis featuring in sci - fi picture show such asThe Meg . While the fossil record of these apex predators is rich , we still do n’t bang very much about their biology . This is a rough-cut job in cartilaginous fish , who rarely leave much to be found in the fossil disk other than tooth . This is why the uncovering of their mammoth vertebrae represents such an exciting opportunity academically speaking , as scientist mould to shut the gap in our noesis of these fearsome hunters .
