Quiz, myth or fact, and the size-o-meter
Test yourself. Every answer comes with its source.
How to play. Pick an answer and the fact behind it appears, with a link to where it comes from. Without JavaScript, open “Show the answer” under each question.
The megalodon quiz
1 What does the name megalodon mean?
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Giant tooth. The word megalodon means “giant tooth”: it is made from Greek root words. Britannica
2 Roughly when did megalodon live?
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23 to 3.6 million years ago. The earliest megalodon fossils date to 23 million years ago, and it became extinct 3.6 million years ago. NHM
3 Why are almost all megalodon fossils teeth?
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Its skeleton was cartilage, and teeth are the hardest part. Like other sharks, its skeleton was mostly cartilage, the same bendy material as in your nose and ears. Cartilage is lighter than bone but very hard to fossilise. Smithsonian Teeth are also the hardest part of a shark, which is why almost all megalodon fossils are teeth. NHM
4 How long could a megalodon tooth be?
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About 18 cm. Megalodon teeth can reach 18 centimetres long. NHM
5 How many teeth lined its jaws?
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276. Its jaws held 276 teeth. NHM
6 What length does the 2025 study say megalodon may have reached?
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24.3 m. A 2025 study by 29 fossil shark experts found that megalodon may have grown up to 24.3 metres long. NHM
7 Where in the UK have megalodon teeth been found?
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Walton-on-the-Naze, Essex. In the UK they have been found near Walton-on-the-Naze in Essex, but they are extremely rare here and usually poor quality. NHM
8 What did megalodon mostly eat?
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Whales, large fish and probably other sharks. With its big serrated teeth megalodon ate meat: most likely whales and large fish, and probably other sharks. NHM
9 Which waters suited adult megalodons?
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Warm tropical and subtropical seas. Megalodon was adapted to warm tropical and subtropical seas around the globe. NHM
10 Which living shark may have competed with it for food?
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Great white. Competition with great white sharks for food may also have played a part. Studies of fossil teeth show that what the two ate overlapped. NHM
11 What is the dark band near the root of a megalodon tooth called?
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Bourlette. But they are bigger and thicker, their serrations are evenly spaced, and they have a bourlette: a darker, chevron-shaped band near the root. Britannica
12 What body shape do newer studies suggest?
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Slimmer, perhaps like a lemon shark. Scaled up to megalodon’s size, a great white would probably struggle to swim, so scientists suggest a much slimmer body, perhaps shaped like a lemon shark’s. NHM
Myth or fact?
Eight statements. Some are true, some are myths.
1 Megalodon is thought to be the largest shark that ever lived.
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Fact. It is considered the largest shark, and the largest fish, that ever lived. Britannica
2 A complete megalodon skeleton is on display in a museum.
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Myth. No one has ever found a complete megalodon skeleton. NHM
3 Megalodon is still alive, hiding in the deep ocean.
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Myth. It is definitely not alive in the deep ocean. If an animal that big were still out there, we would know about it. NHM Below about 3,000 metres there is barely any food, and no sharks live much deeper than that. NHM, still alive?
4 Sharks can get through tens of thousands of teeth in a lifetime.
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Fact. Sharks make new teeth all their lives. Depending on what they eat, they can lose a set every one to two weeks and get through up to 40,000 teeth. NHM
5 Megalodon was definitely the great white’s grandparent.
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Myth. For a long time people thought megalodon was a relative of the great white. The museum’s expert says we now know it came from a different lineage of shark, and was the last member of it. NHM Britannica notes that the debate is not over: some palaeontologists still put megalodon in the same lineage as the great white because of their serrated teeth, while others put it with the megatooth sharks. Britannica
6 Megalodon’s open jaws could have fitted a London taxi.
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Fact. Its jaws are estimated to have opened 2.7 by 3.4 metres: big enough to swallow two adults side by side, or a London taxi. NHM
7 Megalodon teeth have been found on every continent, Antarctica included.
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Myth. Megalodon teeth have been found on every continent except Antarctica. NHM
8 Scientists still argue about exactly why megalodon died out.
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Fact. Exactly why megalodon went extinct is still being worked out, but there is mounting evidence for a mix of changing climate, falling prey numbers and competition. NHM, still alive?
The size-o-meter
How do you measure up against megalodon and its teeth? Type your height and find out.
A 2025 study by 29 fossil shark experts found that megalodon may have grown up to 24.3 metres long. NHM Older length estimates, based on tooth size, suggest a maximum of 15 to 18 metres. NHM
Britannica gives the largest known tooth as 17.8 cm, almost three times the usual 5.4 cm of a great white’s tooth. Britannica
Type your height and press “Measure me”.
Our own arithmetic from the Natural History Museum’s 24.3 m and 15 to 18 m, and Britannica’s 17.8 cm tooth. The size page shows how the sources differ.