|
|
|
OTODUS OBLIQUUS ( MACKERAL SHARK ) TEETH IN MATRIX - Khouribga, Morocco PALEOCENE PERIOD: 60 million years ago Many multiple shark teeth fossils are actually just fabricated composites. Not so with this superb natural example. All three Otodus teeth are literally piled on one another and embedded in the hard matrix. Each tooth is a fantastic example and all have no restoration to the roots which is also common in the marketplace today. Tooth on surface is an anterior tooth followed by a lateral tooth and another posterior tooth peeking out on the bottom of the three. Both, an aesthetic and exemplary quality specimen! These fossilized remains once were a part of a ferocious large shark now extinct, called the Mackeral Shark, otherwise known as Otodus obliquus. This creature is thought to be at the heart of the White shark family tree and is found in sandstone matrix in the phosphate mines in Khouribga, Morocco. The Mackeral Shark was king of the Paleocene seas 60 million years ago and is the prehistoric ancestor of the modern Great White Shark. The
features of these teeth are common to all Otodus species, a massive root
and large separate cusplets flanking the much larger, and heavy center
crown. The characteristics
indicate a highly developed and efficient hunter-killer.
One can gain some insight into how this extinct creature lived by
looking at the behavior of the Great White Shark. In
order to catch its food a shark will go along the sea bottom and look
for shapes at the surface. If it sees something similar to the shape of
its desired prey, they charge full speed. They ram the prey and give it
a first bite all in one motion, which stuns and injures the prey. It
then disappears and allows the prey to bleed to death. When it’s
certain the prey’s dead it begins to feed. Sharks don’t chew their
food, they just rip it into mouth-sized pieces and swallow it whole.
A
big meal can last a shark up to two months. A STUNNING GENUINE AND NATURAL MULTIPLE WITH CHOICE GRADE TEETH 5" long x 5" wide with matrix, largest tooth 2.5" in length on the diagonal edge $185 SH103 STAND INCLUDED Actual Item - One Only |
