Three terrifying water creatures that don’t exist any more
The ancient world witnessed beasts unlike anything we see today. The most famous example all of us know is dinosaurs. Had these giant creatures been alive today, it would have been a nightmare to share the same space on Earth with them! Let’s look at three water creatures that went extinct. As you reach the end of this article, you will be so glad that these terrifying beasts do not exist today!
Titanoboa: The Massive Snake
Anaconda might be a giant snake that exists in the 21st century, but 58-60 million years back, there lived Titanoboa in what is today’s La Guajira, north-eastern Colombia. A massive serpent that weighed more than 1135 kgs, it could grow up to 42 ft and 47 ft long! This gigantic snake had a thick body that could reach up to a man’s waist. In fact, TItanoboa cerrejonensis is the largest snake ever discovered! Just like anacondas, Titanoboa used to wait for their prey beneath the surface of a river or lake. The snake used to seize any creature that came close and dragged it inside the water. Lastly, it would twist the animal before eating it up. Sounds terrifying and straight out of a horror movie, right? You will be surprised to know that Titanoboa was so huge that it could easily prey on ancient crocodiles! We can’t even imagine where we tiny humans would run to escape it!
The monstrous Dunkleosteus
Imagine two giraffes standing on top of one another and measuring their height! Well, that was how long the ancient fish called Dunkleosteus was! Sounds surprising? Well, Dunkleosteus existed 382 – 358 million years ago and was a powerful fish weighing about 3,600 kg. Resembling a shark, this water beast had sharp bony plates in its mouth instead of teeth. Such teeth, along with a strong jaw, made it capable of cutting hard skins or materials. Coupled with quick opening and closing of the jaws, Dunkleosteus could bite with a force of 612kg between those blade-like teeth! Deadly, isn’t it?
Megalodon: A Gigantic shark
Megalodon was undoubtedly the largest shark that our planet ever saw! Its scientific name, Otodus megalodon, literally means ‘giant tooth’. Megalodon’s teeth were almost three times bigger than a great white shark. This fish weighed a stunning 50-100 metric tons and was around 60-80 feet long. Though the whale shark, currently the largest shark on Earth, can reach up to 59 feet in length, it only weighs 14 metric tons. Megalodon might have become extinct around 2.6 million years ago. Quick fact: When Megalodon’s fossils were found, people thought that these were the tips of dragons!