Cretaceous shark centrum?

[schmizzle]

Hi all,

 

My mom was going through some old things in the basement and found this.  She said she found it when she was a kid, so I'm making assumptions it was found in Ellis County, Kansas.  I've found several sharks teeth in the area which I believe are primarily Cretoxyrhina and Squalicorax based on location and pictures on this sites like these.  My very amateur guess is centrum from one of those two, but am curious as to your

thoughts.  Thanks

  

[siteseer]

Yes, that is a shark centrum.  That's a nice specimen.  They are like porcelain, chipping and breaking easily.

[schmizzle]

Thanks for the confirmation @siteseer!  Is there any way to estimate the size of the shark based on size of centrum?

[siteseer]

16 minutes ago, schmizzle said:

Thanks for the confirmation @siteseer!  Is there any way to estimate the size of the shark based on size of centrum?

 

No, not really.  We have no idea if it's a bigger one or a small one from the column.  However, a 2-inch one from the Cretaceous is large.  You might be looking at a shark in the 8-10 ft. range - maybe larger.  It's hard to say.