Did Megalodon resemble modern great white sharks? For years, scientists have pondered what the massive extinct shark that existed between 15 and 3.6 million years ago looked like, and the answer appears to have arrived. A new scientific study, in which Dr. Alberto Collareta, a paleontologist at the University of Pisa's Department of Earth Sciences, also participated, revealed that the giant shark, known scientifically as Carcharocles megalodon (or Otodus megalodon), had a slenderer body than previous studies suggested. "In science fiction novels and films, the Megalodon is typically depicted as a monstrous shark of titanic proportions - explains Dr. Alberto Collareta, the only Italian to be part of the team of 26 international scientists who authored the study - This should not be surprising, as the maximum size of this shark, one of the largest marine predators ever existed, It is now estimated to be around 15-20 meters in total length and there is little doubt about its hypercarnivorous diet."
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