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Extinct megalodons had a jaw-dropping 100,000-calorie requirement a day to survive

Zinc isotope ratios indicate that megadolon did not solely eat whales as food; instead, they had a rather interesting choice of food.

BY SOMDATTA MAITY

PUBLISHED 2 HOURS AGO

Megalodon and shark, artist's illustration. (Representative Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Photo by VICTOR HABBICK VISIONS/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY)

Megalodon may not be the picky eaters, as past examinations envisioned them to be. A new study published in Earth and Planetary Science Letters discusses how the voracious beast was eating varying members of the food chain. Megalodon, a prehistoric predator that went extinct 3.6 million years ago, had a 100,000-calorie-per-day requirement, and to fulfill the need, it preyed on both large and small marine beings, according to CNN. In the past, experts had evidence of large prey. However, by analyzing zinc isotopes in the fossils of this creature, the team has now found proof of even small-sized creatures. This finding reveals another aspect of the colossal beast's lifestyle when they swam Earth's waters millions of years ago.

Photo Of Grey Shark (Representative Image Source: Pexels | Photo by Magda Ehlers)

The teeth of Megalodon

To date, everything that researchers know about megalodon (Otodus megalodon) comes from their fossilized teeth, according to Smithsonian Magazine. In the case of this study, the story was no different. Here, researchers focused on the mineral content of the teeth. Experts believed that megalodon mostly preyed on whales. However, the mineral content indicated that its eating style was akin to that of a great white shark. It implies that they devoured whatever lived in their habitat, irrespective of the size or position in the food chain. Remains examined in the study came from Sigmaringen and Passau, where they were submerged in a shallow estuary.

Zinc isotope values from vertebrate enamel(oid) from the Burdigalian, Upper Marine Molasse, southern Germany. (Image Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters)

Examination of teeth

The subject of the study is 18-million-year-old megalodon teeth found in both locations, according to Phys.org. Researchers examined the ratio of zinc-64 and zinc-66 in the teeth. Past investigations have revealed that animals absorb zinc only through food. Furthermore, a predator's muscles and organs typically absorb more of zinc 64 than zinc 66, as per previous analyses. The more meat and fish a being eats, the less will be the quantity of zinc-66 in their body. Hence, the lower the ratio of zinc-66 to zinc-64, the higher their position in the food chain.

In the study, experts attempted to conceptualize the food pyramid in ancient times by contrasting the minerals detected in the teeth of prehistoric and extant shark species with each other and those of other animal species. "This enabled us to gain an impression of predator-prey relationships 18 million years ago," Jeremy McCormack, a scientist from Goethe University Frankfurt and lead author of the study, shared. The zinc isotope ratios put megalodon at the top of the food chain, along with other sharks, like Otodus chubutensis. Researchers also noticed minimal differences between the mineral patterns acquired from megalodon and creatures in lower levels of the pyramid. It means that megalodon was flexible enough to resort to smaller creatures with less meat when the situation demanded so.

Other findings

This finding challenges the assertion that megalodon primarily focused on marine mammals as food. Researchers also found a slight variance in the diet followed by different populations of megalodon sharks. The remains collected from Passau and Sigmaringen indicated that the sharks in the former location fed more on prey from the lower level of the food pyramid than the latter. This difference could be due to reasons such as availability issues. McCormack labeled megalodon an "ecologically versatile generalist" due to this flexibility.