Megalodon sharks can eat killer whales

The reconstructed megalodon shark (Otodus megalodon) is 16 m long and weighs more than 61 tons. It is estimated that the animal swims at a speed of 1.4 m/s, requires more than 98,000 calories/day and has a stomach volume of nearly 10,000 L. This result shows that the megalodon could swim long distances and eat prey up to 8 long. m, about the size of modern killer whales, today's top marine predators. This is the finding from international research by the University of Zurich published on August 17 in the journal Science Advances.

Simulate megalodon shark hunting whales in the primitive ocean.

Experts were able to conduct the study using a 3D model of a megalodon discovered in the 1860s. Much of the animal's spine is preserved in fossils after it died in Belgian waters at an old age. 46 about 18 million years ago.

"Shark teeth are popular fossils because of their hard composition that allows them to be preserved in good condition," said Jack Cooper, lead researcher at Swansea University. "However, shark bones are made of cartilage, so they are rarely fossilized. Therefore, the megalodon shark's spine from the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences is a one-of-a-kind fossil."

The team, which included scientists from Switzerland, the UK, the US, Australia and South Africa, first measured and scanned every spine, before reconstructing the entire spine. They then grafted the spine into a 3D scan of the megalodon's teeth from the US. The researchers completed the model by adding "meat" around the skeleton, based on 3D scans of the body of a great white shark from South Africa.

"Weight is one of the most important characteristics of any animal. For extinct animals, we can estimate body mass with modern digital 3D modeling, and then set it up. relationship between mass and many other biological characteristics such as speed and energy consumption," said John Hutchinson, professor at the Royal Veterinary College in the UK.

High energy needs can be met through eating high-calorie whale fat. According to the model, digesting an 8-meter-long whale could help a megalodon shark swim thousands of kilometers across the ocean without feeding for two months. The complete model can now be used as a basis for reconstruction and further study. The results of the study help experts better understand the function of large animals in marine ecosystems and the large-scale consequences of their extinction.