The Megalodon shark was significantly heavier than the giant sperm whale, Leviathan, but its opponent excelled in biting force and intelligence.
Megalodon is an extinct species of giant shark that lived approximately 15.9 to 2.6 million years ago, during the Neogene period (from the Middle Miocene to the Late Pliocene).
C. megalodon is considered one of the largest and most powerful vertebrates in natural history, likely having a significant impact on the structure of marine life. Fossils suggest that this giant shark could reach lengths of 18 meters (59 feet) and indicate a global distribution.
Megalodon vs. Leviathan: Which One Will Win?
Livyatan melvillei, or the giant sperm whale, is an extinct member of the prehistoric toothed whale order and is recognized as the largest known species of toothed whale. They lived approximately 13.6 to 11.6 million years ago.
The enormous teeth and massive body size of this whale species would instill fear in anyone who encountered them in the ocean. Melvillei, alongside Megalodon, became two apex predator species, rivals in the oceans of that era. One is the largest predatory fish (Megalodon), and the other is the largest predatory mammal (L. melvillei).
Researchers named this species Livyatan melvillei. “Livyatan” is a transliteration of Leviathan, the gigantic sea monster from mythology, while “melvillei” is derived from the name of author Herman Melville, famous for the novel Moby Dick, which tells the story of a massive, fierce whale regarded by whalers as the lord of the ocean.
