US DOLLAR
EURO
AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR
CANADIAN DOLLAR
POUND STERLING
Product Description
This is a RARE AND LARGE Sperm Whale (Physeter sp.) fossil vertebra - one of the nicest, large prehistoric whale vertebra we have ever seen come from the North Sea! A well-preserved, giant fossil whale vertebra of this size is EXTREMELY UNCOMMON due to the fact that most were preyed upon by large sharks such as Megalodon, and scavenged by smaller meat-eaters when they died in prehistory. Furthermore, the porous nature of the bones makes them more susceptible to decomposition and disintegration over time, rather than fossilization. Prehistoric whale bone fossils are most often found incomplete and fragmented, at best. In most cases, when bones are found in groups, they are often accompanied by Megalodon teeth indicating they were an important food source for the massive Megalodon shark.
The Sperm whale is, and was the largest of all the toothed whales with males attaining lengths in excess of 60 feet. The male Sperm whale is THE largest predator living in the sea today. They are truly the kings of the ocean realm. In prehistory during the Miocene / Pliocene periods, no marine animal grew larger than the Megalodon shark and certain toothed whales such as the Sperm Whale.
Fossil whale vertebrae in this preservation and size are RARE. They are seldom found with such nice surface detail, a complete, intact centrum without the typical saltwater and marine life erosion and destruction. We cleaned this specimen in our lab with microblasters, revealing the minute detail of the bone. The weight and density of the mineralized bone is a testament to its prehistoric origin. This fossil is perfect to display alongside a Megalodon shark tooth collection as this creature would have shared the same waters and served as the main food source for the largest and most dangerous shark that ever lived, the MEGALODON shark. This specimen deserves a place in the finest fossil collection.
