Giant prehistoric eel shark eats its young

A three-metre-long eel shark that lived 300 million years ago was willing to eat its young when food sources became scarce.

Orthacanthus sharks resort to cannibalism when they cannot find food. Photo: Alain Beneteau.

According to International Business Times, scientistsat schoolRoyal Holloway,University of London, UKare focusing on a giant shark called Orthacanthus that lived 300 million years ago.

In a study published on August 11 in the journal Paleontology, the research team saidFossilized spiral-shaped feces belonging to giant prehistoric sharks have been unearthed inMinto Coal Mine in New Brunswick, Canada, which was once an ancient inland freshwater area, to study the diversity of marine fauna at that time.

Orthacanthus, one of the top predators in the marine world, was also one of the largest predators of coastal swamps and shallow seas. This massive fish monster had an eel-like body up to three meters long, a spinal column, and tricuspid teeth.

A juvenile shark's tricuspid tooth found in fossilized feces. Photo: Aodhan O'Gogain.

Studying fossilized feces to understand the behavior and biological characteristics of Orthacanthus, scientists discovered traces of cannibalism, especially the cannibalism of young in this shark species.

The fecal samples were full of teeth from young Orthacanthus sharks, suggesting that they were eaten by their parents. "It is possible that Orthacanthus sharks chose inland freshwaters to protect and raise their young, but they resorted to cannibalism when food became scarce," said study co-author Dr Howard Falcon-Lang.

According to VNE