Megalodons: Still Here?

 
     Last year, I touched upon the idea of the possibility of  Megalodon sharks still existing in the oceans today (It's Shark Week ).  Really, there isn't much fact to base that theory on.  I referenced a fictional story about a Megalodon in present day, but it was just that: fictional.  I also brought up a couple of facts about various fisherman/experienced watermen being afraid of large sharks they had encountered. I brought up examples of newly discovered species and species that were once thought to be extinct that were later found to be alive (this is called the Lazarus Taxon). 

Big E and The Brat Child demonstrating the size of a Meg's jaws.

     So can there still be Megalodons swimming in the oceans?  I imagine anything is possible, but it isn't probable.  Look at the Megalodons size.  Their teeth are 7 inches long.  They are thought to grow to around 60 feet in length.  A school bus is 36-39 feet long so a Meg is bigger than a school bus.I read a quote in an article that said, "A great white is about the size of the clasper, or penis, of a male megalodon," Peter Klimley, a shark expert at the University of California at Davis.  Can you imagine a shark with a willy the size of a 20 foot Great White?  An animal that size would need to eat a lot of fish, and I don't think anchovies are going to satisfy a Megalodon.  So in reality, there really isn't enough food to sustain a Meg population, and you would need a population in order for them to still be surviving (there is no supernatural 4 million year old shark swimming around).  And with all seriousness, there is more evidence supporting the existence of Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster than a Megalodon. 

So, sadly, I'd have to say that no, Megalodons are not swimming around.  Could there be larger than average Great White sharks swimming around? I'd say that's a big possibility. 

But I'm not going to buy that bigger boat just yet.