Shark Teeth - XLG

Beautiful cream colored teeth from the phosphate pits in the Atlas Mountains, Morocco belong to Otodus obliquus, an extinct mackerel shark. Very attractive teeth average approximately 2 1/2" and are all top quality still in matrix (surrounding bedrock).

These teeth have been REPAIRED at the root, but are still a great item to collect.

The "Great Grandfather" of the megalodon!

Item Size: 2 - 2 1/2" (51-64mm)


SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION

Otodus obliquus - Extinct Mackerel Shark
Early Eocene - Approximately 60-45 Million Years Old

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Chondrichthyes

Subclass: Elasmobranchii

Order: Lamniformes

Family: Otodontidae - Glikman, 1964

Genus: Otodus - Agassiz, 1843

Otodus is a large extinct mackerel shark which lived during the Paleocene and Eocene epochs, approximately about 60 to 45 million years ago.

Known Physiology

This shark is known from the fossil teeth and a few fossilized vertebral centra. Like other elasmobranchs, the skeleton of Otodus was composed of cartilage and not bone, resulting in relatively few preserved skeletal structures appearing within the fossil record.

The teeth of this shark are large with smooth cutting edges, measuring up to 10 cm (4 inch) in slant length. Some Otodus teeth also show signs of evolving serrations.