Abstract
We report here supplementary fossil evidence from Guardamar del Segura (south-eastern Spain) that the White Shark, Carcharodon carcharias inhabits the Mediterranean since the Early Pliocene. Moreover, new fossils reveal that the body size of this great predator probably exceeded 6.7 m in total length, a rare size in fossil record and never verified for living specimens to date as discussed in regard of material and methods. A review of fossil evidences of the largest sharks in the Western Mediterranean at the Mio-Pliocene seems to display a gradual ecological replacement of the giant fossil Megatooth shark ("M." megalodon) by the modern C. carcharias beyond the dramatic marine environnemental crisis that underlines the Miocene/Pliocene boundary in the Mediterranean.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 7-16 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Neues Jahrbuch Fur Geologie Und Palaontologie-Abhandlungen |
Volume | 256 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Apr 2010 |
Keywords
- C. Carcharias
- Early pliocene
- Estimated size
- Mediterranean