Transcript:

Today on Animal Fact Files we’re discussing mako sharks. There are two living mako species, and they’re both at risk of extinction. The shortfin mako shark will be the focus of this video because they’re more common and well studied. The longfin mako shark is endangered and relatively unknown. It can be told apart from shortfin mako sharks by its larger eyes, dark coloration around the mouth, and, of course, its longer fins.

Mako sharks are oceanic sharks that live in tropical and temperate waters around the world. Longfin mako sharks are believed to have a cosmopolitan distribution, though they’re most well known from the West Atlantic as well as the waters around the Hawaiian islands. Shortfin mako sharks are believed to be the fastest known sharks alive today. They can reach speeds over 40 miles per hour (64kmh) and are often seen jumping straight out of the water while chasing food.

Mako sharks spend most of their time in water no deeper than 500 feet (150m), though shortfins may venture as deep as 2,400 feet (750m) and longfins may go even deeper. They don’t often come in contact with divers because they spend most of their time away from coasts, however, coastlines with short continental shelves and steep continental slopes may be visited by these sharks. Mako sharks eat other fish like billfish and other sharks, they may also eat sea turtles, small dolphins, and squid. In fact, longfin mako sharks have been found with deep dwelling squid in their stomachs suggesting this species may dive deeper than their congenerics.

In size, mako sharks can reach 15 feet (445cm) in length, though on average they’re just over half this long. Females are larger than males and take longer to develop. Much longer. It takes a male mako shark about eight years to reach reproductive maturity; it takes a female around twenty. Male mako sharks are believed to bite females while mating as evidenced by scars commonly found on reproductive aged females. It takes fifteen to eighteen months for mako shark babies to develop inside the mother. They start out as eggs but quickly hatch and are eventually born live, similar to cownose rays. There may be four to more than twenty pups in a litter, though longfin makos are believed to produce fewer offspring with each litter. It may be up to three years before their mother gives birth again, and mako sharks only live to be about 30 years old.

Their long maturation process and intervals between births makes mako sharks vulnerable to population losses. Mako sharks generally top the food chain but they are eaten by other, larger sharks, like white sharks, as well as killer whales. Their greatest threat, however, are humans who hunt them for food and sport.

Mako sharks may migrate over a thousand miles to follow food or return to breeding sites. There is some evidence that females return to the place they were born to give birth to their own young. And, like the tuna they eat, mako sharks are able to maintain a body temperature warmer than the surrounding water, something many fish are simply unable to do!

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