Endothermic physiology of extinct megatooth sharks

Abstract

The evolution of the extinct megatooth shark, <i>Otodus megalodon</i>, and its close phylogenetic relatives remains enigmatic. A central question persists regarding the thermophysiological origins of these large predatory sharks through geologic time, including whether <i>O. megalodon</i> was ectothermic or endothermic (including regional endothermy), and whether its thermophysiology could help to explain the iconic shark's gigantism and eventual demise during the Pliocene. To address these uncertainties, we present unique geochemical evidence for thermoregulation in <i>O. megalodon</i> from both clumped isotope paleothermometry and phosphate oxygen isotopes. Our results show that <i>O. megalodon</i> had an overall warmer body temperature compared with its ambient environment and other coexisting shark species, providing quantitative and experimental support for recent biophysical modeling studies that suggest endothermy was one of the key drivers for gigantism in <i>O. megalodon</i> and other lamniform sharks. The gigantic body size with high metabolic costs of having high body temperatures may have contributed to the vulnerability of <i>Otodus</i> species to extinction when compared to other sympatric sharks that survived the Pliocene epoch.