Where does this come from, and can I check it?

Sharks have been around for roughly 450 million years, well before the first trees. The figure is taken from Smithsonian Ocean, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

Is this really a animals fact?

Yes. It sits on the Animals shelf, one of 1,090 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.

What else can I read about it?

The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.

Mondo Knows Facts

Sharks are older than trees

Sharks have been around for roughly 450 million years, well before the first trees.

The earliest shark-like fossils date to about 450 million years ago, whereas the earliest tree-like plants appeared around 350 million years ago. Sharks have survived four of the five major mass extinction events on Earth.

White shark photograph — Pterantula (Terry Goss) at en.wikipedia · CC BY 2.5 · licence · source

Where this comes from

Smithsonian Ocean

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

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Tags: sharks, evolution, fossils

Sharks are older than trees: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: Sharks have been around for roughly 450 million years, well before the first trees. The figure is taken from Smithsonian Ocean, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a animals fact?: Yes. It sits on the Animals shelf, one of 1,090 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.