Hastalis Shark Tooth
Carcharodon hastalis
Markings and exact colorations may vary.
A broad, triangular fossil tooth with smooth unserrated edges — an extinct relative of the great white.
- Typical size
- 1–3 in
- How often it turns up
- Common
- Collecting
- Usually legal to collect
- Handling
- Safe to handle
Fossil shark and ray teeth need no permit on Florida beaches. Collecting is banned in Florida state parks and national seashores, and private property needs the owner's permission.
How to tell it apart
- Broad flat triangular blade
- Smooth, unserrated edges
- No side cusplets; root arched
Where to find these in Florida
Beaches rated very good or excellent for shark teeth. Each page shows today’s score, the best window and access details.
- Caspersen Beach · Venice
- Englewood Beach (Chadwick Park) · Englewood
- Fort Clinch State Park · Fernandina Beach
- Lighthouse Point Park · Ponce Inlet
- Stump Pass Beach State Park · Englewood
- Turner Beach · Captiva
- Venice Beach · Venice
- Amelia Island State Park · Amelia Island
- Anastasia State Park · St. Augustine
- Bethune Beach · New Smyrna Beach
- Brohard Paw Park · Venice
- Crescent Beach · St. Augustine
Found one?
Photograph it and BeachNut ranks the likely matches with a confidence read, then logs it to your collection with the beach and date.
Browsing beaches and the full field guide is free. A free account logs unlimited finds and gives you three photo identifications a day.
Commonly confused with
Shortfin Mako ToothIsurus oxyrinchus
Mako teeth are narrow and dagger-like; hastalis teeth are broad and flat.
Megalodon ToothOtodus megalodon
Megalodon teeth are serrated with a dark band (bourlette) above the root; hastalis is smooth with none.
Great White Shark ToothCarcharodon carcharias
Hastalis edges are smooth; great white edges are coarsely serrated.
Otodus chubutensis ToothOtodus chubutensis
Chubutensis is serrated and has small side cusplets; hastalis is smooth with no cusplets.
More shark teeth in the field guide
Get Florida beachcombing tips
Occasional emails: what's washing up, shelling tips and new BeachNut features. No spam, unsubscribe any time.