Two prehistoric sea monsters were discovered after more than 325 million years in the world’s largest cave system, Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. Stretching across more than 420 miles beneath the earth, this vast underground world has revealed fossilized remains of two ancient sharks that once hunted the shallow coastal waters of a long-vanished sea.
These findings not only tell a captivating story about the oceans of an ancient world, but also open windows into a time when what is now eastern North America was submerged under warm, life-rich waters.
Prehistoric shark fossils uncovered in mammoth cave’s ancient limestone
The two sharks identified are named Troglocladodus trimblei and Glikmanius careforum, members of a group called ctenacanth sharks. Both measured roughly 10 to 12 feet long, about the size of today’s oceanic whitetip sharks.
These fossils were dug out of limestone layers formed during the Middle to Late Mississippian Period, around 325 million years ago. The limestone itself is like an open book, telling the story of shallow coastal seas filled with a variety of marine life.
What makes this discovery remarkable is the preservation of cartilage, especially from the younger Glikmanius careforum. Normally, cartilage doesn’t fossilize well because it’s fragile and easily eroded over time. But hidden inside protective cave chambers, these delicate remains have survived, providing rich new details about how these sharks lived and evolved.
As someone who has explored caves and marveled at fossils firsthand, I can say this kind of discovery is a reminder of how patience, teamwork, and curiosity come together in paleontology to uncover stories the earth has long kept secret.
Scientific collaborations fuel discoveries in underground fossil hunting
Bringing these fossils to light required a whole community of dedicated explorers and scientists. From the National Park Service’s paleontology team to the Cave Research Foundation volunteers, every individual played a vital role mapping tight passageways, crawling through narrow water channels, and carefully extracting tiny fossil fragments.
The name Glikmanius careforum honors the Cave Research Foundation’s crucial support in the field, symbolizing how collaboration can unlock hidden treasures.
Superintendent Barclay Trimble described how a single fossil tooth from Troglocladodus trimblei first sparked excitement during an expedition in 2019. This small piece was the key that led to the eventual identification and analysis of multiple specimens.
Preserving such fragile specimens completes a delicate ballet — teams worked patiently to avoid damaging small fragments, knowing that one wrong move could erase millions of years of history.
Hearing about these complex field efforts brought back memories of my own early fossil hunts, reminding me that each discovery requires more than luck — it demands skill, respect for the environment, and a shared passion.
Ancient sharks reveal shifts in marine life as continents merged
The recovered fossils offer clues about how ancient sharks adapted to their environments as the earth’s surface changed dramatically. During the Mississippian Period, coastal waters where these sharks thrived covered what is now Kentucky and Alabama.
Troglocladodus trimblei had uniquely branched teeth, perfect for capturing prey, while Glikmanius careforum likely used a strong bite to feed on smaller fish and squid-like creatures called orthocones.
By studying these fossils through different rock layers, researchers see how rising and falling seas reshaped habitats over time. These dynamic environments influenced the evolution of shark species, with populations shifting as landmasses drifted together to form the supercontinent Pangea.
This gradual merging of continents introduced new ecological challenges and opportunities, explaining why some shark groups diversified while others faded away.
Reading about these changes made me reflect on how life is always adapting to a changing planet, and how tiny details in fossils can trace enormous shifts in history.
The Mammoth Cave fossils also help scientists compare far-flung fossil collections, building a clearer timeline of shark evolution. This combined with studies of coral reefs, bony fish, and ancient sea life gives a holistic picture of ecosystems that existed hundreds of millions of years ago.
If you could dive beneath those ancient seas, what creatures would you hope to see swimming alongside these prehistoric sharks?
Discoveries deep underground remind us that even places we think we know well can still surprise us with stories buried in stone.
If you’ve ever been fascinated by sharks, caves, or the ancient past, share your thoughts below. What questions about prehistoric life would you love to have answered? Feel free to share this story with fellow explorers and leave your comments to keep the conversation going.`
The study is published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.
Those illustrations scare me more than a great white
No such thing as millions of years ago earth was born six thousand years ago and don’t be mad at me you need to take that up with GOD he’s the one that brought everything together six thousand years ago and if you study the Bible it will tell how those dinosaurs fossilized doesn’t take a genuines to know that the power of God’s knowledge will help you understand.
What’s a genuine
Oh so u stupid stupid. Got it.
The earth is billions of years old. It didn’t just pop up one day and we appeared no.
There is this think called evolution.. progression of cells and matter. Starts off with a few germs. These germs evolve. Lands form from magma at the core. Mountains come to live, as well as volcanoes. Which progresses things. Eventually over time dirt forms from a very long long process of break down. Plants grow. Oxygen is brought in. Evolution starts. Starts with ocean creatures. They find a way to move onto land. Things evolve further. Over time.. instead of insects and nearly unfunctional critters turn into moving critters. Then come the prehistory time lines.. where marsupials, dinosaurs, birds etc start to come in. Catastrophic resets for each one. Leaving minimal to live and start off again. Those critters slowly begin the new stage of time. Apes come, they loose hair and muscle mass over time. Standing more upright. Smaller faces, fingers everything. Which is what we are. Humans.
God ain’t got nothing to do with it my friend. All science and evolution
Where did matter come from?
The big miracle of evolution: everything came from nothing, and order came from chaos.
Do better, your logic and reasoning skills are lacking.
Hello, is this reasonable? If we put a million Lego pieces in a bag, how likely is it that when we take them out, they will form, for example, a complete helicopter? So we, who are more complex and precise than that, are never the product of random evolution.
You will eat those words one day!
We are the only species on earth with no hair to cover our bodies. You should read the naked ape. We make no sense on this earth compared to any other animal. We were created, either by aliens or god, some could say god is even classified as alien. A life form We have no comprehension of. Either way our DNA even shows signs of tampering. Otherwise we would live thousands of years old, not just a hundred. We tried to uprise thousands of years ago, and our creators had our lifespan shortened, due to our insolence and rebelious nature. He wanted no record to exist of the uprising of modern humans, as well as knowledge and wisdom of how to actually win next time.(read lost book of enki and follow ancient tablets all throughout ancient sumer). Our DNA is literally capped at 120 years max, this was our prison cell. The Bible and other books speak of humans lasting thousands of years before death (reference lost book of kings and lost book of jubilees) regardless we and other animals were definitely created not evolved. (now before all evolutionists get their torches and pitchforks out) Life has definitely evolved since creation, and some animals too, but the base of our creation was a big bang of the brain and animal kingdom. We do not belong on this earth, but resemble more of a Created and planted species, like a seed world. (Reference aliens)
So retarded. Bet you believe in Santa claus too.
Wrong.
I agree with you Octavio! I think that people who don’t understand our Lord and savior are afraid of him and perhaps they should be!
How do you know that there are 325 million years old
This world and humans didn’t start with Adam and Eve. This earth has been here for millions of years. It’s called the evolution of man kind.
Based on what? Imagination. There is absolutely no proof of macroevolution. No intermediate forms in the fossil record, none. Where do the millions of years come from? Imagination because mankind refuses to acknowledge God.
The have the illusion of being 325,000,000 years old. They could have been buried during Noah’s flood 6,500 years ago.
It’s a waste of time to argue with a closed mind. Better to listen politely and pray earnestly for the other’s sake that our God will grant them an epiphany.
This world fat pre-dates Jesus as well as Adam and Eve. Even the Buddhist philosophy is older than any of the 45,000 Christian denominations and the 10,000 listed religious organization. It’s almost as if they worship a false creator. By the way, dinosaurs and sea dwelling creatures are not monsters, never have been even Dragons’s are more humane than humans. It’s has always been humanity that does the monstrous destructive things, far beyond what they need to survive in failing to thank the creatures they kill for the sacrifice of their life to sustain humanity. Everything else only kills to survive and leaves the pretty rocks alone and do not pollute everything while feeling confident in tossing trash out the window. No, the only invasive monsterous species on Earth so far has been humanity, taking up far too much space all over the place, failing to recycle or rebuild – upgrade as green as possible. Also, it’s never been shark infested waters, the sharks have to live there. It’s humanity the infestation of all sorts of places we should have never destroyed. Rain forests, oceans, woodlands, making a wild growing herb, “illegal,” when the bullies and biggest jerks smoking the stuff would lead to a calmer, more laid back humanity. Always taking, never giving back, it’s killing the planet. So don’t get it twisted again, people of all ethnicities and cultures are the monsters. Not wildlife who isn’t so stubborn they refuse to follow their instincts, pretending we aren’t mammals another species of animal too.
I’m sorry but no way all this came from chance with no Creator !
So all this talk of fossils but not one picture of it
Ok….. So I just had to give my two cents here so y’all don’t have to steal them from me…… (Hehe)….. Both the religious and scientific sides are indeed right and wrong…… No the earth is not “6000yrs old”….. The very earth and stone will tell us that….. As well as the surrounding planets…… However…… No we are not nature’s random evolutionary design….. And the natural order of things can explain that…..
In the Bible there are many things explained as in the creation of the planet and everything else…… With us as an exception to the rule or law governing everything else….. So is the question….. Did we evolve? Yes…. After we were created….. Not we evolved from a monkey…… If we had monkeys would have evolved with us….. Being of a greater evolutionary family species….. And yet they haven’t…. As they’ve watched us evolve? That’s just stupid….. And saying nature is stupid to….. To reinforce this concept….. EVERY creature on the planet has one or more ‘natural’ predator….. Except us….. Our only true natural predator is ‘natural selection’….. What’s more is….. For a creature such as a monkey to evolve into a creature such as us….. Then suddenly decide we will evolve no more then this…… Is in itself stupidity…… Especially when we can look back millions of years and see how one species alone has evolved….. (To which one might reply, but our brains evolved not the rest of us) To which I’d have to say your evolved from a monkey to think so stupid…… To expand on this evolutionary idea? Another question….. We evolved from monkeys….. Why are we the only species at all on this planet to evolve to a higher realm of consciousness and no other no not one other creature has even come close to this level of evolutionary greatness? And even deeper still….. Nature has achieved such greatness in us….. And no where else? Mars? Venus? Jupiter? Not even our moon? Nature can evolve creatures that can survive space….. But not creatures that are smart enough to study it and travel it but only once? When we can see that nature repeats itself? Oh there’s that word again….. Stupid….. What’s smart is Divine intervention….. Divine inspiration….. Divine creation……
Besides….. Would you yourself rather believe that you evolved from a monkey? Or that you where made of Divine intention? They may be related to us….. But if we are created from this earth….. So is everything else on this planet….. Oh an guess what science proved just that…..
Ladies and gentlemen….. Class is out…… Have a great day…… And be blessed in your glorious day……
THE TWO SHARK FOSSILS DISCOVERED WITHIN THE MAMMOTH CAVE SYSTEM. THE TROGLOCLADODUS TRIMBLEI & THE GLIKMANIUS CAREFORUM. WHAT IF ANY MODERN DAY SHARKS EVOLVED FROM BOTH OF THEM & OR ARE DECENDENTS OF THE TWO ANCIENT SPIECES TALKED ABOUT IN THIS ARTICAL?