Colossal killer sperm whale was 57-foot-long 'sea monster' that rivalled megalodon – The Mirror

One of the largest and most powerful marine predators was a prehistoric killer sperm whale so big in size it rivalled the famous giant shark megalodon.
Named after the Biblical sea monster and the author of classic novel Moby Dick, Leviathan (or livyatan melvillei) used to dominate the food chain, hunting other whales and sea mammals.
The colossal creature is said to have been around 47–57 feet long and had teeth measuring up to one foot in length and four inches in width.
Leviathan would usually tear chunks off its unfortunate prey with a powerful bite with its primary diet thought to have consisted of baleen whales.
Scientists estimate Leviathan, which was about the same as a modern adult male sperm whale, lived around 12 to 13 million years ago, the Daily Star reports.
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Due to its size and ferocity, the whale was a strong rival for the megalodon, which typically sized up at 18 metres long and pursued similar prey.
Back in 2008 researchers in Peru found the mysterious bones from livyatan melvillei and scientists even have evidence that suggests the two beasts faced off in scary sea battles, with a skeleton of the whale being found with "meg" bite marks in North Carolina, USA.
Shortly after its discovery, Dr Oliver Lambert of the Natural History Museum in France commented: "This sperm whale could firmly hold large prey with its interlocking teeth, inflict deep wounds and tear large pieces from the body of the victim.
"With their large size and robust jaws, Leviathan adults were surely free from predation.
"It was a kind of sea monster. It’s interesting to note that at the same time in the same waters was another monster, which was a giant shark [Megalodon] about 15 metres long."
Reflecting on its theorised encounters with the megalodon, he said it is "possible they may have fought each other.”
The creature is thought to have become extinct at the end of the Miocene period amid a period of cooling in the oceans.
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