Incredible 23ft long 9-million-year-old ancestor of great white shark with huge flesh-tearing teeth discovered in Peru
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AN INCREDIBLE nine million year old ancestor of the great white shark has been discovered in Peru. The 23ft long beast had huge flesh-tearing teeth that ripped through its prey and could grow up to the size of small boat. The fossil of the shark that roamed the seas millions of years ago was exceptionally well preserved, leaving experts stunned.
![[Fossil of a 9-million-year-old great white shark jaw.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/9-million-year-old-fossil-965982818.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
This shark is believed to have been an ancestor of the famed great white. The fossil has shown that its teeth spanned up to an astonishing 8.9cm in length. For comparison, the great white shark could grow teeth up to 2.9inches long. It is believed that adults could grow to near 22.9ft in length, which is the size of a small boat.
![[Person pointing at a fossilized crocodile skull in a museum display case.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/person-gestures-next-fossil-crocodile-965370347.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
The nearly-complete Cosmopolitodus Hastalis fossil was discovered on Monday, 146 miles south of Lima in Peru's Pisco basin. Palaeontologist Mario Urbina said: "There are not many complete shark (fossils) in the world.". Mario also noted that sardines were likely the staple of the Cosmopolitodus Hastalis' diet.
![[Fossil of a 9-million-year-old great white shark relative.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/part-9-million-year-old-965370152.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
This is because anchovies did not yet exist when the shark roamed the open seas and oceans. The shark was also likely one of the major predators in its ecosystem. Evidence from the fossil, including teeth marks on the bones of a Pliocene dolphin of the species Astadelphis gastaldii reveal that the Cosmopolitodus Hastalis attacked its prey from below and behind.
![[Illustration comparing a 23ft Cosmopolitodus Hastalis shark to a 16ft great white shark.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/DD-23-01-graphic-Cosmopolitodus-Hastalis-shark-v2_GRAPHIC-1.jpg?strip=all&w=765)
