Shortfin mako shark

Shortfin makos live far out in the ocean.

They like water that is not too cold. They swim long distances across the sea.

Shortfin makos live in tropical and mild oceans all around the world. They are open-ocean sharks, but sometimes come near the coast where the deep water is close to shore.

They usually stay in water warmer than about 16 °C and swim from the surface down to about 500 meters deep. They are great travelers that can cross large stretches of ocean.

The species is widespread in temperate and tropical waters of all oceans (IUCN). The Florida Museum traces its range from California to Chile and from the Grand Banks to Argentina in the Americas, from Norway to South Africa including the Mediterranean, across the Indian Ocean to Australia, and from Japan to New Zealand and the Aleutians to the Society Islands.

It is a neritic and oceanic shark of the epipelagic and mesopelagic zones, usually in water above about 16 °C, from the surface to about 500 meters and recorded to 888 meters. NOAA Fisheries describes it as highly migratory, and genetic work has identified separate subpopulations in different ocean regions.

Makos eat fast fish and squid.

They chase tuna and swordfish. They are fast enough to catch them.

Shortfin makos hunt other fast swimmers of the open ocean. They catch tuna, swordfish, other sharks and squid, and once in a while they eat a sea mammal or a sea turtle.

They are very active hunters and are often seen leaping out of the water while feeding.

The Florida Museum describes a diet of fast-moving pelagic fishes such as swordfish and tunas, other sharks, and squid, with marine mammals and sea turtles occasionally eaten. Makos are very active and are often seen breaching while feeding.

The same source notes that larger sharks may eat young makos, while adults are likely preyed on only by humans.

Makos are always on the move.

They can jump right out of the water. They travel very far across the ocean.

Shortfin makos are very active sharks. They are famous for leaping high out of the water, often while they are hunting, and they travel long distances through the open ocean.

Because they swim so far, from one country's waters to another's, international groups help manage them. Makos are also well known to sport anglers, who count them among the great game fish of the world.

Makos are very active and are often seen breaching while feeding; the Florida Museum notes they can leap great distances out of the water. NOAA Fisheries describes the species as highly migratory, and it is managed internationally, including by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT).

Regarding people, the Florida Museum, citing the International Shark Attack File (2018), records shortfin makos in 10 unprovoked attacks, and notes that hooked makos often damage boats and injure fishers. The species is also a prized sport fish.

There are fewer mako sharks than there used to be.

Many are caught by fishing boats. New rules help protect them.

The shortfin mako is endangered. Its meat is valuable, its fins are sold, and many are caught on long fishing lines meant for tuna and swordfish. Because makos grow up slowly and have pups only every few years, they cannot quickly replace the sharks that are caught.

Countries are now working together on rules, such as limits on keeping makos and controls on the fin trade, to help them recover.

The IUCN assessed the shortfin mako as Endangered (A2bd) in 2018 (published 2019), estimating a median global decline of 46.6 percent with the highest probability of a 50 to 79 percent reduction over three generations (72 to 75 years). Declines were steep in the North and South Atlantic and less steep in the North Pacific and Indian Ocean; the South Pacific population appeared to be increasing.

It is caught as target and bycatch in longline, purse seine and gillnet fisheries and kept for its high-value meat and fins. Measures include CMS Appendix II (2008), a Mediterranean retention ban (GFCM, 2012), a 2017 ICCAT measure for the overfished North Atlantic stock, and listing on CITES Appendix II. In 2022 NOAA Fisheries found that listing under the US Endangered Species Act was not warranted.