Otodus: Difference between revisions
Spotty11222 (talk | contribs) italicized vernacular and edited paragraph structure |
GrahamBould (talk | contribs) No edit summary |
||
| Line 44: | Line 44: | ||
{{reflist}} |
{{reflist}} |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:Otodontidae]] |
||
[[Category:Prehistoric sharks]] |
[[Category:Prehistoric sharks]] |
||
[[Category:Paleocene fish]] |
[[Category:Paleocene fish]] |
||
Revision as of 03:55, 18 January 2009
| Otodus | |
|---|---|
| |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| Class: | |
| Subclass: | |
| Order: | |
| Family: | Otodontidae Glikman, 1964
|
| Genus: | Otodus
|
| Species: | O. obliquus
|
| Binomial name | |
| Otodus obliquus | |
Otodus obliquus was a large prehistoric mackerel shark which lived during the Paleocene and Eocene epochs, approximately about 60 to 45 million years ago.
Known physiology
This shark is known from the fossil teeth and a few fossilized vertebral centra.[1] Similar to all elasmobranchs, the skeleton of Otodus was composed of cartilage and not bone, resulting in relatively few preserved skeletal structures appearing within the fossil record. The teeth of this shark are large with smooth cutting edges, measuring up to 10 cm (4 inch) in slant length.[2] Some Otodus teeth also show signs of evolving serrations.[3]
Size estimation
Scientists estimate that this shark could probably grow up to 9 meters (30 feet) long.[3]
Diet
Otodus's diet probably consisted of marine mammals, fish, and other sharks.
Fossils
Otodus obliquus is thought to have evolved into the genus Carcharocles, given substantial fossil evidence in the form of transitional fossils. Fossil teeth have been found in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco and the Nanjemoy Formation of Virginia respectively.
During the late Early Eocene (mid/late Ypresian) Otodus-like teeth with lightly serrated cusplets and a serrated cutting edge appear very similar to fossil Otodus in the sediments of the Chesapeake Bay Region of the eastern USA and northwest Kazakhstan, suggesting a worldwide event, and supporting the theory that Otodus evolved into the Carcharocles lineage.
See also
References
- ^ Bourdon, Jim, Otodus
- ^ Otodus Obliquus Shark trivia
- ^ a b Renz, Mark (2002), Megalodon: Hunting the Hunter, PaleoPress, pp. 26–30, ISBN 0-9719477-0-8