ZAP’S FACTS!
SEA LIFE

Sharks have been swimming the oceans longer than trees have existed.

They're older than dinosaurs, older than Saturn's rings, older than trees.

2 min read
Sharks have been swimming the oceans longer than trees have existed.
THE FULL STORY

Trees seem old. Some trees alive today are over 4,000 years old, and the oldest fossil trees go back over 300 million years. That feels ancient - and it is. But it’s not even close to how long sharks have been around.

The first sharks appeared in the oceans roughly 450 million years ago. That’s about a hundred million years before the first trees. It’s also before dinosaurs (which only appeared about 230 million years ago), before flowers, and before any animals had even moved onto dry land.

Since then, sharks have survived five mass extinctions - including the one that wiped out the dinosaurs and most of life on Earth. Their bodies, basically a streamlined toothed missile with no bones (just cartilage), have barely needed to change. If a design works, you keep it for 450 million years.

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