Giant fossilized shark teeth wash ashore in North Carolina

In the town of Surf City, North Carolina, and at Topsail Beach, visitors have been stumbling upon some surprising discoveries: massive fossilized shark teeth, which have washed ashore. Several have reportedly been found, some nearly as large as a human hand. They come from the Megalodon, an extinct species of shark from prehistoric times that was, relatively speaking, absolutely massive.

The megalodon was a massive, terrifying predator; fossils of the species hint that such sharks could have been up to nearly 60ft in length. Fossils from the creatures often surface in the form of teeth, which is exactly what beach goers in North Carolina are finding. According to WITN, a local news station, the teeth were washed up from a recent storm.

It appears some are being found in other locations on the eastern North Carolina coast, as well, not all of them as big as the one pictured above, but still quite large. Reportedly, it isn't uncommon to find large shark teeth in the aforementioned regions, the discoveries just don't typically happen in such a rapid fashion.

Hurricane Joaquin is likely the reason for the mass of recent discoveries, having churned the ocean greatly and dragged debris and more valuable objects from the ocean floor. Said one lucky beach goer to WITN, "I felt like I was a lottery winner or something."

SOURCE: WITN