If you’re ever near the gulf coast of Florida, you should consider making a stop in Venice, Florida, aka the “Shark Tooth Capital of the World!”
We had a quick overnight passing through on our way to Sanibel Islands and had a great time visiting their spectacular beaches. The highlight of the trip was finding REAL shark teeth right on the beach!
What Makes Venice the Shark Tooth Capital of the World?
Years ago, the gulf waters surrounding Venice were filled with numerous giant sharks. While the larger sharks like the Carcharodon Megalodon are extinct, there are many smaller species that remain off the coast. The sharks like the area for its calm, warm waters. When a shark passes away, its body lays on the sea floor to disintegrate, but over time their teeth become fossilized.
Once fossilized into the dark grey color you see, the tide carries them in to be picked up by happy beach goers. Some get buried deep in the sand and wash back up again after storms.
Where to find Shark Teeth in Venice
The city of Venice has about 14 miles of beautiful beaches to hunt for shark teeth, and (depending on crowd level), you should be able to find teeth at almost all the beaches.
The BEST beach for finding shark teeth is Caspersen Beach. Located at the most southern point of Venice beaches, this location makes a great spot to begin your search. It is a large beach, but the parking lot will fill quickly, especially on the weekends. We went around 9:00am and did not have trouble finding a spot for our van, but the lot was full when we left around lunchtime.
The water is clearer near Caspersen Beach, and it also has a few rocky sections where shark teeth can get caught between the rocks. It is also a great place to scuba dive, which could take your shark tooth hunting to a-whole-nother level!
How to find Shark Teeth
If you’re lucky, you will be able to find some shark teeth just by walking the edge of the beach. But a sand sieve will greatly improve your chances. The teeth get stuck in the sand, usually in groups of small shells, and it can be harder to see them. The sieve allows you to dig deeper under the sand and water, scoop up a big shovel full of shells (and hopefully teeth) and sift through them in the water. You can look through the sieve or dump the pile of shells out onto the beach to comb through for teeth.
If you’re staying in a hotel, many have sand sieves available for guests to use for free. You can also rent them directly on the beach from Sharky’s on the Pier. Local hardware stores and even Walmart also carry a version of the sand sieve. It makes it so much easier, and I highly recommend trying to use one to help you on your search.
We spent a few hours in the afternoon at Venice Beach and found a few. The next morning we spent two hours at Caspersen Beach and were able to find more than 20 to bring home with us!
We had a great time finding shark teeth in Venice, and can’t wait to stop there again the next time we are in Florida!