Huge ‘monster’ tooth found by Florida family vacationing in South Carolina, tour says

A prehistoric megalodon tooth the size of a soup bowl was found buried at a fossil-rich site in South Carolina’s Lowcountry, according to a tour group leading the excursion.

The tooth — measured at 6.5 inches — was uncovered June 8 by a Florida family that went fossil hunting in Summerville to celebrate their son’s high school graduation, according to Palmetto Fossil Excursions.

The average size of megalodon teeth is 3 to 5 inches, which suggests the tooth came from a truly massive specimen.

“Can you say monster?!” Palmetto Fossil Excursions wrote in a June 10 Facebook post.

“I think it’s safe to say that this graduation celebration was a hit. The guide said that the family was overjoyed and there were a few shouts of excitement for sure!” company officials told McClatchy News.

By coincidence, it was the recent high school grad who first saw the tooth, the company said.

The fragile tooth was removed from the clay as part of a block to prevent it from breaking, the company said.

Paul Columbia reported on Facebook that his family found the tooth and they intend to share photos once it’s cleaned up. The family of four lives in Largo, Florida, and has “a passion for hunting and collecting shark teeth,” Fox News reported.

“We could not believe the size, the color or our luck,” Columbia told Fox. “What started as a baseball tournament trip became an experience of a lifetime.”

The tooth was located 6 feet below the surface, in a fossil-rich clay deposit that was once the floor of an ancient sea, Palmetto Fossil Excursions said.

Megalodon ruled that ocean, routinely shedding teeth eventually covered by sand and frozen in time. The apex predators grew to 60 feet in length and could weigh as much as 75 tons, experts say.

The earliest known megalodon fossils date to 20 million years ago, according to the National History Museum, and “the enormous shark dominated the oceans until becoming extinct just 3.6 million years ago.”

Palmetto Fossil Excursions notes the 6.5-inch tooth is the second largest found at one of its clay deposits.

Last fall, company President Skye Basak discovered a 7.22-inch tooth just feet away from where the 6.5-inch tooth was recovered, officials said.

Summerville is about a 25-mile drive northwest of Charleston.

This story was originally published June 11, 2024 at 8:21 AM with the headline "Huge ‘monster’ tooth found by Florida family vacationing in South Carolina, tour says."