A researcher in the US has said that the photo of a triangular tooth circulating on social media is that of a Megalodon, a great white shark of the prehistoric era. The tooth was recently discovered in a phosphate mine, according to a Reddit user who has posted the photo.
In the post, user named BushyBeaver187 has asked fellow Reddit users to identify it. While sharing the post, the user wrote, "Help Identifying."
"Girlfriend found this at a phosphate mine. After googling, we're trying to figure out if this is a great white or megalodon tooth. Any help is appreciated," he further said in the comment section.
Many Reddit users offered their own explanations.
"Looks pretty fossilised and is much too large to be a great white tooth. I think you've got yourself a Megalodon tooth here," wrote a user.
Another user said, "Not sure why you got downvoted, I'm pretty damn sure that's a meg tooth. The size alone points to megalodon. Also, not an expert, but quite the enthusiast."
Ashby Gale, a paleontologist and owner of Charleston Fossil Adventures, told Newsweek that the tooth actually belongs to a Megalodon. The fossil, according to him, may be between 3.6 and 15.9 million years old.
According to the outlet, shark tooth may readily turn into fossils, but the remainder of the animal is rarely discovered that way. The size of the Megalodon tooth in the Reddit image is unclear. The largest one ever discovered was over 7 inches long, indicating that the shark was enormous. Megalodons were marine creatures that were found in almost all the oceans.
The iconic shark species is believed to have gone extinct 3.6 million years ago.
