A fossilized megalodon tooth has been discovered more than 10,000 feet beneath the Pacific Ocean, in what researchers say is the first documented case of a megalodon tooth being observed and collected in its original position on the deep seafloor.
The tooth was recovered during a 2022 mission led by the Ocean Exploration Trust, which was exploring a previously uncharted seamount inside the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. While megalodon teeth are found fairly often, they usually turn up on land or in coastal deposits, making this deep-ocean discovery unusual.
What makes the fossil particularly valuable is that researchers were able to identify exactly where it was resting before it was collected. As noted by the research team, that kind of information is often missing from deep-sea fossil discoveries, which are commonly recovered through trawling operations. The results were later published in the journal Historical Biology.
An Unexpected Find During A Deep-ocean Mission
Scientists aboard the research vessel Nautilus were studying the geology and biology of the ocean floor around Johnston Atoll in June 2022 when the discovery happened. The remote atoll lies roughly 800 miles (1,300 kilometers) south of Hawaii.
To investigate the seamount, researchers deployed Hercules, a remotely operated vehicle capable of working at extreme depths. During the dive, the vehicle collected several samples from more than 10,000 feet (3,090 meters) below the surface.
Back on board, the samples were sent to the University of Rhode Island for processing. Among them was a gold-colored tooth measuring 2.7 inches (6.8 centimeters) long.
The Ocean Exploration Trust reported that researchers quickly suspected the fossil belonged to a megalodon. The identification was later confirmed by shark expert Dave Ebert of Moss Landing Marine Laboratories in California.
Video Footage Revealed The Tooth Before Collection
The story did not end with the identification. After confirming the fossil’s origin, the research team reviewed footage captured by Hercules during the dive. The video revealed that the tooth had actually been sticking out of the sand before the vehicle scooped it up. That detail transformed the discovery into something much more significant.
Researchers writing in Historical Biologydescribed it as the first recorded in-situ observation and sampling of a megalodon tooth in the deep sea. Scientists were able to see the fossil in its original location before it was removed.
Many deep-sea fossils are collected by dragging nets across the seafloor, a method that can make it difficult to determine where a specimen originally came from. In this case, scientists were able to connect the fossil directly to its environment.
Study co-author Nicolas Straube, from the University Museum of Bergen in Norway, called it an “amazing find” in a statement released by the Ocean Exploration Trust. He also added that:
“The fossil was discovered at a very remote deep-sea locality from which megalodon fossils are rarely documented. Further, its partial encapsulation with manganese suggests that fossil shark teeth are an ideal basis for manganese accumulation.”
A New Clue About Where Megalodon Roamed
The discovery could help researchers better understand the distribution of Otodus megalodon, the enormous shark that dominated the oceans for millions of years.
Data presented in the study indicate that megalodon lived from around20 million years ago until it became extinct roughly 3.6 million years ago. The team estimate the species reached at least 49 feet (15 meters) in length and may have grown as large as 65 feet (20 meters).
Megalodon teeth are relatively common fossils. Each shark had around 276 teeth, and the species inhabited oceans worldwide. Yet, as explained by the Ocean Exploration Trust, most discoveries come from locations near coastlines, rivers, or ancient shoreline deposits rather than the deep ocean.
For the researchers, that is what makes this tooth stand out. Study author Jürgen Pollerspöck of the Bavarian State Collection of Zoology said:
“This fossil provides us with important insights into the distribution of megalodon.”
He added that the specimen suggests megalodon was “not a purely coastal species” and moved across ocean basins in a way similar to modern sharks such as the great white shark.
