It has been a big week for megalodon shark enthusiasts.

Maryland General Assembly lawmakers are trying to designate the prehistoric creature as the state’s official shark — which would be the first in the nation.

The shark, which roamed the ocean 23 million to 3.6 million years ago, is the largest ever of its species. The predator was about three times the length of a great white shark, which is about as big as an SUV. A megalodon’s teeth — the holy grail for many Maryland fossil hunters — can be as large as an adult person’s head.

Fossilized teeth from more than 60 species of extinct sharks have been found across Maryland, according to a news release by the Calvert Marine Museum. The museum testified in support of the legislation, arguing the megalodon could be a “source of statewide pride and an exceptional educational tool,” according to the news release.

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The megalodon highlights the state’s rich fossil history, said Stephen Godfrey, curator of paleontology at the Calvert Marine Museum. Many millions of years ago, dozens of species of dolphins and sharks swam in the present-day Chesapeake Bay. The ocean was far deeper then, flooding over the Eastern Shore. The megalodon lived in this area for at least 10 million years, he said.

It is why the creature’s teeth have been found in seven counties in Maryland, including at Calvert Cliffs State Park. Godfrey likes the park, he said, and how it encourages the amateur and avocational paleontological community to collect fossils.

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The beach at Calvert Cliffs State Park is made up of pieces of fossilized shells mixed with sand and other eroded sediments from the cliffs and the occasional shark tooth.
Trying to find a shark tooth along the shores of the Chesapeake Bay amid shells and sand can be a challenge. (Jerry Jackson/The Banner)

Hunting for a meg tooth

Many megalodon teeth have made their way to the Natural History Society of Maryland’s basement in Overlea, where volunteers and board members such as Nick Spero meticulously catalog and add them to the museum’s collection.

The museum goes on fossil hunting trips once a month with the public, often to Stratford Hall near the border of Southern Maryland and Virginia. Fossil hunting, even for the larger megalodon’s teeth, takes patience and a trained eye.

“Having someone show you what you are looking for makes a big difference,” Spero said.

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Shark teeth are often surrounded by rocks and industrial rubble, and you usually have to dig for the bigger ones.

During these trips, Spero tells folks: Even if you’re unsure if you found a fossil, grab it, just in case.

Marylanders often go to Calvert Cliffs for fossil hunting. Once in a while, someone finds a megalodon tooth.
Marylanders often go to Calvert Cliffs for fossil hunting. Once in a while, someone finds a megalodon tooth. (Calvert Marine Museum)

If the legislation passes, the megalodon would join a diverse crowd of state symbols, including the Baltimore oriole, the Maryland blue crab, the Chesapeake Bay retriever, the Baltimore checkerspot butterfly, the diamondback terrapin, the calico cat and the Astrodon johnstoni.