The Parotodus shark, also known as the "false" Mako shark, is an extinct genus of shark in the order Lamniformes. It lived from about 53 million years ago to about 1.1 million years ago, from the Eocene epoch to the Pleistocene epoch.
Parotodus appears to have originally been a small shark that increased in size over time, reaching up to approximately 7.6 meters in length. Its teeth feature a distinctive curvature and rarely show signs of wear, suggesting a diet composed largely of soft-bodied animals. Parotodus teeth are highly valued among fossil collectors due to their scarcity. Their rarity suggests that these sharks preferred living in the open ocean, far from the continents.
Also due to the rarity of fossils, it is not known for certain which family Parotodus belonged to. A few proposals include Otodontidae, Cardabiodontidae, Archaeolamna, thresher sharks, or white sharks.
