No, it is not a megalodon that appeared in a video published at the end of May on TikTok by the student of marine biodiversity Alex Albrecht
No, it's not a megalodon the one that appeared in a video published in late May on TikTok by marine biodiversity student Alex Albrecht, who shot a huge shark off the coast of New England (USA).
Indeed, the animal is giant and the impression (perhaps the hope) that it was the legendary megalodon was immediately widespread. But unfortunately (or fortunately) the megalodon is an extinct species. Really existed, but in the distant past.
Within days of its first release, the video had been viewed more than 37 million times. But, as giant as it is, the immortalized shark is far from the size of the megalodon, recently discovered even larger than previously thought, with potentially over 20 meters.
Read also: Students accidentally discover that the Megalodon was even larger than estimated
The animal sighted in the USA was then identified to be a basking shark (scientific name Cetorhinus maximus Gunnerus), a species with an average length of 10 meters and a maximum that can reach 12 meters, the second largest fish currently living on Earth after the shark. whale.
I am so happy to be able to share one so wonderful creature with so many people - says Albrecht enthusiastically - I hope it leads people to want to protect and conserve biodiversity in our oceans.
Megalodon or not, this is the real message: let's protect our beautiful nature.
Sources of reference: NBC Boston / Vesa channel / Youtube
Read also:
- All there is to know about the megalodon, the largest shark ever lived on Earth
- Discovered the real dimensions of the megalodon, the largest shark ever lived on Earth
