There Is No Better Time for a Shark Tooth Hunt
By Dr. Ashley Oliphant
As the chill starts to creep into the air in many of America’s favorite beachcombing locations, the fossil hunters among us grow increasingly excited. The cooler temperatures mean fewer people will be on the beach, thus reducing competition. Fall storms continue to keep Mother Ocean agitated and therefore more likely to give up her premium treasures. The benefits of the stronger winter currents will soon be realized. It is the ideal time to go shark tooth hunting, whether you are a seasoned veteran of the hobby or just a curious beginner who wants to join the fun.
While there are many methods you could employ to hunt for shark teeth (whether that is a boat excursion to a barrier island, a SCUBA diving trip to an offshore ledge, or an inland digging day in a creek or riverbed), we’ll focus on the easiest way to get the job done: beachcombing on public shores. The beauty of shark tooth hunting on the beaches recommended here is that you can be a surface finder. No digging, sifting, or raking is required when you have a lot of shell hash to search through and the ocean is continually moving it around for you. And make no mistake: shark tooth hunting is a game of percentages. You want to maximize the amount of material your eyes see to increase the likelihood of finding teeth. You do that by moving and covering as much ground as possible.
Shark tooth hunting is a different endeavor than shelling in that you are not just looking for chunky shell beds as a sign that it is going to be a good day. Beyond having a lot of shell hash to search through, you need that sea debris to also have evidence of fossil washout. Usually that is indicated by a high concentration of black material within the shell hash and an often-gravelly appearance to the sand. This is why some places in America are much better shark tooth hunting locations: not every beach is going to have a fossil washout that corresponds to a geological time in history when sharks proliferated.
You will note that the suggested shark tooth hunting locales in this article are all in the Southeast. This is not to say that you might not find a shark tooth in another area of the country. You can get well up into Virginia and Maryland and make great discoveries. Similarly, the Gulf Coast from Florida all the way over into Texas can sometimes be quite good. Surprising little nooks like Dauphin Island, Alabama, are wonderful places to center your search. However, if you are looking for a premium haul in terms of quantity, quality, and size, the Carolinas and select locations in Georgia and Florida are your best bet. You can be the most proficient fossil hunter on the globe and still not find a shark tooth if you are hunting on a beach where they are not likely to be present. The following chart offers specific guidance to help you decide where to go.
Best Shark Tooth Hunting Beaches in America
North Carolina
Once you get below the Outer Banks, the fossil record of the coastal Carolinas really pops out, and that is where your best chance for shark teeth will be. Experienced hunters flock to Topsail Island and Holden Beach especially.
South Carolina
The entirety of the South Carolina coast is excellent for shark tooth hunting. In fact, it is the longest stretch of beach in the country that offers an excellent chance of success. Favorites include Cherry Grove Beach (and the entirety of the “Grand Strand”), Myrtle Beach, Litchfield Beach, and the beaches of Edisto Island.
Georgia
There are some sneaky good pockets of shark teeth waiting to be found in the Golden Isles: St. Simons Island, Sea Island, Little St. Simons Island, and Jekyll Island. Tybee Island has a strong game, too.
Florida
The Sunshine State has three prime target areas that draw in the pros: Fernandina and Juno/Jupiter on the East Coast, and Caspersen/Venice on the West Coast. Venice actually touts itself as the “Shark Tooth Capital of the World.” It is a wonderful place to look; however, to have the best outcomes there, you generally need to be sifting in the water, which requires a considerable amount of work. Also, many of the teeth you find in Sarasota County will be worn down. Oddly enough, the rest of the beaches in Florida are not known for shark tooth hunting at all.
Welcome to the Party
The hobby of shark tooth hunting continues to grow each year as more families want to incorporate ecotourism into their vacations. Novices who want to get involved can begin at any age. Below are some tips that will make your first shark tooth hunting trip more successful.
Tips for Beginners
- Before you head to the beach, buy a shark tooth hunting book and read about the hobby. You should also purchase or borrow several shark teeth local to the beach you want to hunt and begin studying them at home. This way you can train your eyes to see their distinguishing features, which is a key component to hunting well.
- If you have never found a shark tooth, see if an experienced hunter will take you to the beach for a tutorial. Have that person drop a few teeth in a large circle drawn in the sand and then give you hints as you try to locate them. This is not cheating—it is practicing.
- Read the moon chart before you hunt and focus your efforts on full or new moons (when the ocean tends to be more consistently stirred up).
- Learn to analyze tide charts and routinely consult them before you go out. You will almost always do better on a receding tide (water going out).
- 99 percent of shark teeth will be black, as that is the most common color of fossilization. As you are learning the ropes, pick up everything that is black and shiny. In the beginning, you will be repeatedly fooled by oyster shell fragments, and that is okay. Picking up the wrong thing is how you learn to see the right thing.
- Concentrate on triangular shapes and try to ignore items with other shapes. If you are already a sheller, sea bean hunter, or sea glass aficionado, you will have to turn off that part of your brain while you learn to hunt for shark teeth. As a beginner, having distracted eyes will hinder your progress.
- Cover as much ground on the beach as you can. The veteran hunters are so good at it because they walk many miles each day.
- Follow social media groups dedicated to shark tooth hunting to stay in tune with which locations are hot from day to day. By staying connected to daily trends, you will gather better intelligence about when and where to go next.
- Remember that early birds almost always do better. And being early does not always involve the time on the clock. You want to be there first when the water reveals fresh material. The longer it sits on the beach, the more likely it is to have been picked over.
- Be patient with yourself. Shark tooth hunting can have a steeper learning curve than other niche beachcombing hobbies, mainly because shark teeth are much smaller than the things most people are looking to find.
How big was that fish?
Did you ever find a shark tooth and wonder how big the shark was that lost it? There is actually a formula that will provide the answer. You only measure the enamel of the tooth (the shiny part) and not the root (the dull part). For every inch of enamel, you get ten feet of shark.
Cream of the crop
This is a tiger shark tooth in the coveted “Carolina Cream” coloring, the name for the lighter fossilization hue that has come to be associated with many beaches in the Carolinas. Because such a small percentage of the shark teeth you find will be this color, the Carolina Creams are highly sought after by collectors. The trick to finding them is to look for the brown root and not the actual enamel of the “tooth.”
Mega find
For most collectors, finding a megalodon tooth is the pinnacle of their fossil hunting dreams. Megalodon teeth do wash up on beaches, especially in the Carolinas, but they are often broken and worn, like the smaller teeth in the picture to the left. This is because they have come out of the stable location where they went through the process of fossilization and have likely been tumbling around in the surf. The larger megalodon tooth is in pristine condition because it was pulled up by a scuba diver from the ocean floor, relatively close to the pocket of sand where it fossilized.
As you check off your bucket list species and begin to amass a collection, you will discover that shark tooth hunting is really a lifelong learning hobby. There is always more to explore, and the chase for bigger teeth, different fossilization colors, and pathological (or deformed) teeth will keep you engaged for years. To start, though, all you have to do is point your toes toward the beach and get moving.
If you would like to learn more about shark tooth hunting, Ashley’s book Shark Tooth Hunting on the Carolina Coast is a great text for beginners. You can follow Ashley’s shark tooth hunting adventures in her Facebook group, “Ultimate Shell Seeker’s Guide” or grab a copy of her book The Ultimate Shell Seeker’s Guide: Building a Better Beachcombing Strategy.
All photos courtesy of Ashley Oliphant.
Learn more about beach fossil finds from around the world. Articles ›
This article appeared in Beachcombing Magazine Volume 46 the January/February 2025 issue.
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