Shark teeth

1
Shark teeth

The reworked shoreline sandstone layers of the 23 Ma old sea sediments bear a very rich marine fauna. The so called “shark tooth-bearing beds” also contain a mixture of remains from rays, dolphins, manatees and crocodilians. The marine beds were first reported by Koch (1903, 1904). He described 25 shark species from 8 genera, with 4 new species among them. After his description the “Ipolytarnóc shark tooth-bearing bed” became a characteristic marker of the Eggenburgian stage of the Lower Miocene in the Central Paratethys.

The original fauna was revised recently based on new finds. The result shows a very diverse Lower Miocene shark community, representing warm-temperate water, a subtropical climate with wide habitation range that includes 19 genera with 16 certain species (Kocsis, 2007, 2016).

The fossil shark teeth captured the mind of local people, folklore created a myth about them by calling the shark tooth as a petrified bird-tongue.

It is less known that the marly layers of the glauconitic sandstone have fragments of solitary coral and mollusk remains. Bioerosional feeding traces refer to the presence of sea urchins as well.

RELATED