Discovered shark head 330 million years in caves in the United States

The researchers were surprised to find traces of the giant fossil shark's head in the cave walls in Kentucky.

The remains of this ancient animal are found in Mammoth Cave National Park - the world's longest cave system, according to the National Parks Authority.

Shark fossils discovered by scientists investigating cave system, believed to be up to 330 million years old, according to John-Paul Hodnett, paleontologist and program coordinator at the Park Dinosaurs in Maryland.

"Scientists sent Hodnett pictures of the findings so he could help identify them. The paleontologist could identify most fossils, but what made him" really excited "was that saw some shark teeth attached to large fossils' cartilage.

Based on the marks on the cave wall, he determined the 76cm shark's lower jaw.(Photo: John-Paul Hodnett).

"This is a big problem," said Hodnett. "It suggests there may be a shark skeleton in the cave."

Shark bones are mainly cartilage, which is not fossilized, as well as bones, so it is rarely kept intact. Preserved cartilage can only be found in very few parts of the world.

On the other hand, shark teeth are among the fossils commonly found around the planet because these animals replace their teeth regularly.

Mr. Hodnett finally visited the park to examine the fossils and although he did not find an intact shark skeleton, he found parts of the head belonging to a prehistoric shark, which, according to His words were about the size of a modern white shark.

Based on the marks on the cave wall, he determined that the shark's lower jaw is 76 centimeters long, the teeth and the cartilage pieces belong to this large shark and the other 100 teeth belong to other sharks.

'What we find in the cave is really amazing because just from the shape of the jaw, we can find a lot of things about how the species live and we will probably more accurately identify the genealogical tree of Shark family , ' Mr. Hodnett told CBS News.

The team determined that the shark belonged to a species called Saivodus striatus that lived some 330 million years ago in the last period of the Mississippi civilization .

Most shark fossils discovered by researchers come from a layer of rock extending from Missouri to Virginia. However, this is the first time the presence of sharks has been recorded.

"Mammoth Cave has rich fossilized shark remains and much remains to be discovered , " said Hodnett.

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