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Sharks: Find out the true size of prehistoric giant shark Megalodon
Image source, Oliver Demuth
Scientists have discovered the true size of the prehistoric giant shark, Megalodon.
Until now only the length of the Megalodon had been estimated from fossils of its teeth.
However, recently a team from Swansea and Bristol universities have worked together to discover just how big it was.
The scientists used mathematical methods and compared living relatives of the shark to figure out its size.
Image source, Getty Images
The results suggest that a 16 metre long Megalodon - nearly three times as long as a great white shark - is likely to have had a head around 4.65 metres long and a fin as large as an entire adult human.
The great white is the world's largest known predatory fish, which bites with a force of two tonnes. However, the Megalodon had a bite force of more then ten tonnes.
Image source, Jack Cooper
Jack Cooper who was part of the team said this was his "dream project".
"I have always been mad about sharks. Megalodon was actually the very animal that inspired me to pursue palaeontology in the first place at just six years old."