Unearthed: The cannibal sharks of a forgotten age
Thursday, August 11, 2016 - 18:01
in Paleontology & Archaeology
Image of a thin-section through an Orthacanthus coprolite with a black box indicating the tooth of an Orthacanthus. Scientists have discovered macabre fossil evidence suggesting that 300 million-year-old sharks ate their own young, as fossil poop of adult Orthacanthus sharks contained the tiny teeth of juveniles. These fearsome marine predators used protected coastal lagoons to rear their babies, but it seems they also resorted to cannibalising them when other food sources became scarce.