The ocean is a place that’s dark, creepy and unexplored. However, compared to the gigantic monstrosities that roamed its depth millions of years ago, today’s deep-sea marine creatures seem relatively harmless. An adult man would have been but a mere snack to the monsters of old. Here is a short list of the creepiest and most ferocious monsters that called the prehistoric ocean their home:
3. Mosasaurus
15m long and equipped with an armor made of thick scales and a huge crocodile-like jaw full of sharp teeth – you don’t want to cross paths with this guy! The mosasaurus was the unrivaled king of the seven seas. There was nothing which could withstand the sharpness of his teeth and the force of his jaws. Fish, sharks, turtles, other oceanic reptiles, pterosaurians and smaller mosasaurus were all on the dinner menu. What a deadly beast.
2. Basilosaurus
Despite the name, the basilosaurus was no reptile. Instead, it was a prehistoric whale species with a long, snake-like body. This monster could grow up to a length of 20m. No wonder our ancestors started to believe in monstrous sea beasts and dragons, when they found fossils of this monster!
1. Megalodon
While we shudder and tremble in fear of the great white shark today, the king of the modern oceans is but krill compared to the shark that dominated the deep waters 17 – 2 million years ago. The Megaladon could grow up to a size of 20m – nothing was safe from this monster. A single tooth would be at least as large as the hand of an adult man, and our ancestors used them as spear heads. Legend has it, that some Megalodons still lurk the deep seas today…
