Nature · Belgian IRSNB P 9893 · tentative 2025 reconstruction
How long is a otodus megalodon?
A 2025 study tentatively reconstructs the Belgian megalodon specimen IRSNB P 9893 at 16.4 meters long. Its long, slender body differs from older stocky restorations.
≈ 16.4 m
Sourced measurement- Measurement
- Belgian IRSNB P 9893 · tentative 2025 reconstruction · approximately 16.4 meters
- Subject or version
- Belgian IRSNB P 9893 · tentative 2025 reconstruction
- Using this value
- A starting value for the illustration, not a universal or confirmed height.
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A little more perspective
The study combines an approximately eleven-meter trunk reference with estimated head and tail lengths to infer 16.4 meters for the Belgian specimen. No complete skeleton is known. A separate 24.3-meter extrapolation in the same research concerns larger Danish vertebrae and is not the reference selected here.
The illustration follows the study’s tentative slender-body interpretation. The researchers emphasize that the exact shape, size and placement of most fins remain unknown. Color, soft tissues and internal proportions are interpretive; only the selected snout-to-tail length is calibrated.
Quick facts
A 2025 study tentatively reconstructs the Belgian megalodon specimen IRSNB P 9893 at 16.4 meters long. Its long, slender body differs from older stocky restorations.
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Sources and measurement notes
- DePaul University: March 10, 2025 megalodon study, Belgian reconstruction
- Shimada and colleagues 2025: Biology of Otodus megalodon
The selected 16.4 meters is a tentative reconstruction of a particular fossil reference.
Source review recorded . Maintained by Ishan Karunaratne. Suggest a correction with a source and the exact measurement being compared.