Possibility of MEG being real

I agree. Calamari is some good eating.

Personally I highly doubt the existance of such an animal today, particularly in the deepest parts of the ocean. That said, just a couple comments.


1. Absense of proof is not proof of absense. Just because we have no modern evidence of this creature does not mean that it does not exist. Still, without proof of existance, the rational stance should be to doubt until shown otherwise (makes religion tough).

2. Energy. As allready stated all things need energy to survive. Most all energy on earth stems from the sun. In the greatest depths of the ocean, there is little to no light. This means that there is less density of energy and hence less density of life. This is not to say that life does not occur, mearly that is is rarer. There are admittedly other sources of energy, geothermic vents for example, which could supply energy for life and hence food.

3. Temperature. Most animals require maintainance of a particular bodies so that enzymes can be effective within their bodies. This means that if the animal is endothermic (warm blooded) it would require a greater amount of energy (i.e. more than normal amounts of food for its size) to keep itself warm in the depths of the ocean. If the animal is exothermic (cold blooded) it would have taken some serious serious evolution to get its enzymes to work at a body temperature anywhere near the temperature of the Mariana Trench. Again, possible geothermicly heated areas, but doubtful.

4. Genetic Drift. I hold a masters degree in genetics though population genetics was never my forte. I was under the impression that a much larger number than 500 was needed to maintain a healthy population. That said, who said this would be a helathy population?. The main fear with genetic drift is an inablility to cope with a given environment, often loss of disease resistance. Just as there is not as much life in the depths of the ocean, there is also less bacteria. Fewer species also means fewer specialized viri. It would be conceptually possible for a species to exist in an almost genetically homogenous population for a good while. This is further evident when you consider that creatures are unlikely to live in close proximity to one another and would have little to no contact with one another, i.e not spreading disease as effectively. Just a quick example, I use an inbred mouse strain in my experiments. Genetically unhealthy as can be. But we keep them in a pathogen free environment, so it just doesn't matter. Yes you will always have some problems associated with inbreeding, but the fact that these are problems do not mean that the species can't go on living...think British monarchy...Prince charles is one goofy looking guy, but he's still breathing. While these animals may not be genetically healthy, they could still exist, perhaps even on a decline.

Almost anything is possible. Most arguments can be rationalized on both sides. We have no proof either way as to the existance of this creature. I personally find it highly unlikely that such a creature would exist, particularly within the Mariana Trench, but until evidence is found, one way or another all can achieve is pure wothless speculation, fun as it may be.

P.S. My first post.

These things do exist,we just can't find them.Remember the earth is 75% water and we haven't explored every square foot of all these oceans,rivers,etc..And now on to the giant squid subject.I don't if any of you heard but a 20 foot tentacle was found a few years ago so stew on that ha.

(Even if its just a joke) Good point, whyowhy, that could be. I could see a Meg attacking a Giant Squid.


P.S. I'm what some people would call a Gaint Squid expert(I just did a 4th grade report on them). I would like too see a Meg try and tackle a Colossal Squid.

2 gaint squid carcases on display in the Smithsonian. Was looking at them the other day. The ones we've found so far are big, but not that big, i.e they'd be the equivalent of a cheese-stuffed jalapeno popper to a 40 ft shark.

[edit on 7-10-2004 by contraa]

It hurts me to say this, but I no longer believe that megalodon still roams the depths. Not because we haven't seen one or because we haven't found any corpses (sharks sink when they die, they don't float like goldfish), but because of the food dilemma.

Yes they have found teeth that suggest they are only 10,000 years old, but skeptics will tell you that that is inconclusive information that has not been officially verified.

I had not heard of this sandtiger reference and until someone pulls up a trustworthy site, I tend to not believe it. Their teeth are completely different from that of the megalodon and the similarity between the gws and megalodon teeth is obvious.

I could prattle on for a while on this subject but it has been talked about before on the boards and I think that (however unfortunate) the skeptics have the upper hand here. As you may be able to tell from my name, I used to be a believer too, but alas had to give in to the facts.

PS I am going great white shark diving in the Farallons off of San Francisco for my 18th birthday on Oct 28th...I'll have someone post my obituary on ATS if I don't make it back


Check this out, tell me if I am crazy

I'm not sure about a megalodon, but there could be some species of shark in the depths that reaches 40ft. Its totally feasible. Look at the 6 gilled shark. It wasn't discovered untill the late 1970's I believe. the 6 gilled shark is a bottom dweller that lives at great depths and is PRIMARILY a SCAVENGER. They also get pretty large. Also, at those depths, don't you need to factor in pressure and water temperature to figure out how much food intake would be needed for this fish to survive. I would think that at temperatures as cold as is at the bottom of the sea that metabolism would be quite slow and therefore the shark would not need to eat as much or as often.

"I would think that at temperatures as cold as is at the bottom of the sea that metabolism would be quite slow and therefore the shark would not need to eat as much or as often."

Actually realize I made a mistake. Sharks cant internally regulate their body temperatures at all, completely cold blooded. Deeper it gets, the less it would be able to move at all. Not good for a hunter at all.

By "in the depths" I'm not sure how deep you are thinking these things would live. One thing is for sure though, the deeper you propose, the more unlikely it is. Mariana trench...right out. The only thing that can support major life at that depth has to be geothermal vents and that wouldn't work for a shark.

Anyone know off the top of their head a formula for temperature and water depth? Perhaps just some examples of temperature at different depths?

Originally posted by contraa
Actually realize I made a mistake. Sharks cant internally regulate their body temperatures at all, completely cold blooded.

Not all...Link