This object is on permanent display in the Florida Fossils: Evolution of Life and Land exhibit, located in the front entrance shark jaw case.
Story
Those jaws were put back together by a retired physician in Jacksonville named Dr. Jeremiah. And his passion was, on the weekends, reconstructing fossil shark jaws and he donated all of those jaws that are in the front of the Fossil Hall to the Museum. If we had tried to go out and purchase those or acquire them in an auction … they basically are priceless. And they’re unique. Really, really cool.
What was interesting is that when we first put this jaw on display, there was some concerns because it says it’s from the St. John’s River. These are teeth from the St. John’s River of an animal that used to live there millions of years ago, but some of the public were concerned that maybe these Megalodons still lived in the St. John’s River so we had to retrofit a label that said, “This animal is now extinct.”
Bruce MacFadden
Curator, Vertebrate Paleontology
Distinguished Professor
Florida Museum of Natural History
Summary
Miocene Megatoothed Shark (Carcharodon megalodon)
From Duval Co., Florida
Lived ~7-5 million years ago
Exhibit Area