Sharks can be said to be the top overlords among marine life today. Whether it is speed, bite force, bite ability or attack strategy, they are all top-notch players. But if you push the time back to the Devonian period 405 million to 365 million years ago, sharks are not outstanding. They are even unfortunately reduced to a vulnerable group and are dominated by a marine giant called Dunkleosteus. kind of oppression.
Dunkleosteus eats shark
So, how strong is Dunkleosteus? Let's not talk about its physical measurement data. Just by hearing the nickname "Steel Crusher", you can understand how terrifying this creature is.
According to modern scientific analysis of Dunkleosteus fossils, the body length of this fish-like creature is conservatively estimated at about 11 meters (the largest carnivorous bony fish in history), and its body size is about 6 tons, whether fat or thin, so It not only ensures the strength, but also does not affect the speed of Dunkleosteus in the water.
Body structure of Dunkleosteus
As for why Dunkleosteus can stand at the top of Devonian marine life, this is mainly because they have a very terrifying bite force. For reference, the bite force of the great white shark, the terrifying predator in the ocean today, is only 765 kilograms, while the bite force of Dunkleosteus has reached an astonishing 5,000 kilograms. Such a powerful bite force can almost cut off a medium-sized shark in one bite.
Dunkleosteus' steely teeth
Coincidentally, the favorite food of Dunkleosteus during the Devonian era was sharks. Because shark meat is relatively large and of good quality, it can fully satisfy the strong appetite of Dunkleosteus. In addition to sharks, Dunkleosteus's favorite food is placoderm fish that are about 4 meters long. If these "foods" are not available, Dunkleosteus can only satisfy its hunger with aquatic creatures such as trilobites or nautiluses. In fact, the reason why Dunkleosteus became extinct in the later period was closely related to lack of food.
Dunkleosteus hunts riptooth shark
In fact, most people have limited knowledge of Dunkleosteus. Many people are even influenced by some games on the market and mistakenly believe that Dunkleosteus is the strongest marine predator in history. Here I also want to pour cold water on the big wave of Dunkleosteus: Although this marine giant has dominated the late Silurian and almost the entire Devonian, if we look at it in the long history, Dunkleosteus Not even the strongest. At least compared to the 36-ton bite force of the megalodon, Dunkleosteus is far behind.
Dunkleosteus skull fossil
However, this is also in line with the laws of biological cycles. No one can think of holding the throne forever. It would be a good outcome for each of them to lead the way for hundreds of millions of years. After all, humans, as the primates of all things, don’t know if they can rule the earth for that long!
animal tags： shark Dunkleosteus fossil Devonian predator
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