Older than trees! Sharks are 450 million years old and have circled the galaxy twice

Sharks swim through our oceans like living relics that give a peek into the past, as these ancient mariners predate not just dinosaurs, but even the first trees on land, living through cosmic spins and earthly upheavals. Their stories are lessons in resilience, adapting silently when the continents changed, and skies were all dark due to the massive extinction event that turned the sky into one filled with dark, ashy clouds of dust. Be it deep-sea wanderers or surface hunters, sharks are a true embodiment of evolution's silent, yet resilient endurance.

Sharks predate even the trees!

Sharks first appeared around 450 million years ago during the Silurian period, long before trees evolved about 390 million years ago, reports the Natural History Museum. Back then, Earth lacked forests, and massive water bodies had shark ancestors like spiny Acanthodians that roamed ancient seas. They've circled the galaxy twice on our planet, surviving five mass extinctions that wiped out most life.

What helped them sail through the mass extinctions?

Their adaptability helped them become adaptable to habitat flexibility, from deep oceans to rivers. Emma Bernard, fossil fish curator at the Natural History Museum, said in a piece for the museum, "I think it is safe to say that it is partly because sharks are able to exploit different parts of the water column, from deep, dark oceans to shallow seas, and even river systems. They eat a wide variety of food, such as plankton, fish, crabs, seals and whales. This diversity means that sharks as a group are more likely to survive if things in the oceans change".

The Greenland shark is one of the longest living animals on Earth!

The Greenland shark lives up to 400 years. The earliest sleeper sharks emerged around 100 million years ago, by which time sharks had already dominated for ages. Their slow, prehistoric look fits a lineage that's outlasted nearly everything.



Sharks have evolved into noticeably diverse forms over time, from the bizarre spiral-toothed Helicoprion to the warm-blooded megalodon, which was slender rather than stocky. Their teeth have been found worldwide, including important specimens like a manganese-encrusted megalodon fossil discovered at a depth of 3,090 meters. While their cartilage rarely fossilises, these surviving relics continue to amaze scientists.