Ancient Shark Fossils Reveal Lost Cretaceous Sea Beneath Egypt's Desert

Scientists from Cairo University reported the discovery of fourteen fossil shark teeth dating back roughly 70 million years in the remote Western Deserts of Egypt. The teeth represent five extinct shark groups, including several species not previously known from Africa, such as Cretalamna cf. maroccana and Scapanorhynchus cf. raphiodon. Variation in tooth shape suggests diverse feeding habits and different habitat preferences among the sharks.

These remains were found alongside fossils of small fish, invertebrates and marine reptiles, supporting the view that a nutrient-rich, warm sea once covered the area during the Late Cretaceous. Researchers attribute the ancient marine productivity to active upwelling that supplied abundant plankton. The study appears in the journal Cretaceous Research.