The word, Heliocprion, [pronounced “he-lee-co-pri-on”] translates into “spiral jaw.” This extinct ocean-dwelling cartilaginous creature has been commonly inferred to be an ancient (but unusual) shark. In actuality, however, it is most closely related to the modern-day chimeroform ratfish (= “ghost sharks”) [which are not sharks.] Some reports say that the body of Helicoprion was bigger than the size of a modern-day "Great White Shark," but because the skeleton of Helicoprion was cartilagnous (i.e. that type of material does not preserve well), a full body of Helicoprion has not been found.
Heliocprion ranged from early to late middle Permian time (approximately 250 to 275 million years ago) [see Fig.1]. It lived in in ocean waters in Asia, Australia, Europe, and the Americas. The first fossils of this animal were found in 1886, in Western Australia.
The only part of an Helicoprion that is fossilized is the mineralized (=hard material) tooth whorl. As mentioned above, the rest of its skeleton consisted of soft cartilage. Thus the body shape of Helicoprion is based on inference, not on an actual specimen (see Fig. 2).
The teeth of Helicoprion occur only in its lower jaw, and they occur in tooth whorls (for example: a 23 cm in diameter whorl, with about 117 serrated teeth) [see Fig. 2]. The only remains of Helicoprion are about 100 known examples of these tooth whorls. The teeth occur only in the lower jaw. Unlike sharks, Helicoprion did not shed its teeth; instead, it added them during its lifespan.
Exactly how Helicoprion fed has been the source of many different interpretations. Also, it is likely that they ate squids and fish.
Classification (via Wikipedia, 2026)
Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
Class Chondrichthyes
Order Eugeneodontiformes (extinct)
Family Helicoprionidae (extinct)
Genus Helicoprion (extinct: its teeth are unique in that they are arranged in a tooth whorl inside the mouth).
Only three species of Helicoprlion are known.
Figure 1. Geologic time chart. Helicoprion ranged from Permian into Triassic time.
REFERENCE: The URL’s these days are becoming so complicated and long, it is just more simple to do the following: to see an excellent video of this fossil animal, just go to YouTube and type in: Helicoprion. Then, click on Helicoprion: The Buzz Saw Shark.
Figure 2. A sketch of the anterior half of a Helicoprion.
