Overview

• A recent study suggests the megalodon, an extinct apex predator, could grow up to 80 feet long, rivaling the size of a blue whale.
• Unlike earlier comparisons to the great white shark, researchers now believe the megalodon had a more slender body shape, similar to a lemon shark.
• The study used fossilized vertebrae and compared the megalodon to over 150 modern and extinct shark species to estimate its size and body proportions.
• Megalodons were likely warm-blooded, which may have helped them hunt in cooler waters but also contributed to their extinction due to high energy demands and food scarcity.
• Baby megalodons were estimated to be the size of modern great white sharks at birth, capable of hunting marine mammals without relying on nursery areas.