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Body moderately slender; eye relatively small; snout relatively long and pointed; teeth smooth-edged, long and slender at front of jaws, blade-like and triangular at rear; a large first dorsal fin, origin over pectoral border; very small second dorsal and anal fins positioned near base of tail fin; pectoral fins relatively long and narrow, but less than head length; strong lateral keel on each side of tail base; tail fin crescent-shaped
Dark blue shading to nearly white on ventral parts; white under snout.
Attains nearly 400 cm; size at birth between 60-70 cm.
Habitat: oceanic, pelagic.
Depth: 0-740 m.
Circumglobal in tropical and temperate seas; California to the Gulf of California, Nicaragua and Costa Rica, Ecuador to Chile, the Galapagos and Revillagigedos.
Attributes Abundance: Common. Cites: Not listed. Climate Zone: North Temperate (Californian Province &/or Northern Gulf of California); Northern Subtropical (Cortez Province + Sinaloan Gap); Equatorial (Costa Rica to Ecuador + Galapagos, Clipperton, Cocos, Malpelo); South Temperate (Peruvian Province ). Depth Range Max: 740 m. Depth Range Min: 0 m. Diet: bony fishes; octopus/squid/cuttlefish; sharks/rays; sea snakes/mammals/turtles/birds. Eastern Pacific Range: Northern limit=33; Southern limit=-9; Western limit=-118; Eastern limit=-79; Latitudinal range=42; Longitudinal range=39. Egg Type: Live birth; No pelagic larva. Feeding Group: Carnivore. FishBase Habitat: Pelagic. Global Endemism: Circumtropical ( Indian + Pacific + Atlantic Oceans); East Pacific + Atlantic (East +/or West); Transisthmian (East Pacific + Atlantic of Central America); East Pacific + all Atlantic (East+West); All Pacific (West + Central + East); TEP non-endemic; "Transpacific" (East + Central &/or West Pacific); All species. Habitat: Water column. Inshore Offshore: Offshore; Offshore Only. IUCN Red List: Near threatened; Listed. Length Max: 400 cm. Regional Endemism: Island (s); Continent; Continent + Island (s); Eastern Pacific non-endemic; Tropical Eastern Pacific (TEP) non-endemic; All species. Residency: Resident. Salinity: Marine; Marine Only. Water Column Position: Mid Water; Near Surface; Surface; Water column only;
Bellido-Millán, J.M. and Villavicencio-Garayzar, C.J., 2002., Pesqueria artesanal de tiburon en la region central del Golfo de California. En: Lozano-Vilano, M. L. (Ed.). Libro Jubilar en Honor al Dr. Salvador Contreras Balderas., Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo León:143-152.
Béarez, P., 1996., Lista de los Peces Marinos del Ecuador Continental., Revista de Biologia Tropical, 44:731-741.
Castro-Aguirre, J.L. and Balart, E.F., 2002., La ictiofauna de las islas Revillagigedos y sus relaciones zoogeograficas, con comentarios acerca de su origen y evolucion. En: Lozano-Vilano, M. L. (Ed.). Libro Jubilar en Honor al Dr. Salvador Contreras Balderas., Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo León:153-170.
Compagno, L.J.V., 1999., Checklist of living elasmobranchs. In Hamlett W.C. (ed.) Sharks, skates, and rays: the biology of elasmobranch fishes., The John Hopkins University Press:471-498.
Eitner, B. J., 1995., Systematics of the genus Alopias (Lamniformes: Alopiidae) with evidence for the existence of an unrecognized species., Copeia, 1995:562-571.
Eschmeyer , W. N. , Herald , E. S. and Hamman, H., 1983., A field guide to Pacific coast fishes of North America from the Gulf of Alaska to Baja California. Peterson Field Guide Ser. 28., Houghton Mifflin:336pp.
Findley, L.T., Hendrickx, M.E., Brusca, R.C., van der Heiden, A.M., Hastings, P.A., Torre, J., 2003., Diversidad de la Macrofauna Marina del Golfo de California, Mexico., CD-ROM versión 1.0. Projecto de la Macrofauna del Golfo . Derechos reservados de los autores y Conservación Internacional.
Fischer , W. , Krup , F. , Schneider , W. , Sommer , C. , Carpenter , K. E. and Niem, V. H., 1995., Guia FAO para la Identificacion de Especies de para los fines de la Pesca. Pacifico Centro-Oriental. Volumen II. Vertebrados - Parte 1., FAO2:647-1200.
Galván-Magaña, F., Abitia-Cárdenas, L.A., Rodríguez-Romero, J., Pérez-España, H., Chávez-Ramos, H., 1996., Systematics list of the fishes from Cerralvo island, Baja California Sur, Mexico., Ciencias Marinas, 22:295-311.
Galván-Magaña, F., Gutiérrez-Sánchez, F., Abitia-Cárdenas, L.A., Rodríguez-Romero, J., 2000., The distribution and affinities of the shore fishes of the Baja California Sur lagoons. In Aquatic Ecosystems of Mexico: Status and Scope. Eds. M. Manuwar, S.G. Lawrence, I.F. Manuwar & D.F. Malley. Ecovision World Monograph Series., Backhuys Publishers:383-398.
Jimenez-Prado, P., Béarez, P., 2004., Peces marinos del Ecuador continental / Marine fishes of continental Ecuador., SIMBIOE/NAZCA/IFEA tomo 1 y 2.
Love, M.S., Mecklenburg, C.W., Mecklenburg, T.A., Thorsteinson, L.K., 2005., es of the West Coast and Alaska: a checklist of North Pacific and Artic Ocena species from Baja California to the Alaska-Yukon border., U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey, Biological Resources Division, 288pp.
Rafinesque, C. S., 1810., Caratteri di alcuni nuovi generi e nuove specie di animali e piante della sicilia, con varie osservazioni sopra i medisimi. (Part 1 involves fishes, pp. [i-iv] 3-69 [70 blank], Part 2 with slightly different title, pp. ia-iva + 71-105 [106 blank])., Caratteri,.
Ramírez Rodríguez, M., 1997., Producción pesquera en la Bahía de La Paz, B.C.S.. En Urbán Ramírez, J. y M. Ramírez Rodríguez (Eds.). La Bahía de La Paz investigación y conservación., Universidad Autónoma de Baja California Sur:273-282.
Van der Heiden , A. M. and Findley, L. T., 1988., Lista de los peces marinos del sur de Sinaloa, México., Anales del Centro de Ciencias del Mar y Limnologia de la Universidad Autonoma Nacional de Mexico, 15:209-224.
Elasmobranchii (sharks and rays) >
Lamniformes
(Mackerel sharks) >
Lamnidae
(Mackerel sharks or white shark)
Etymology:
Isurus:
isos
(Gr.), equal;
oura
(Gr.), tail, referring to caudal-fin lobes of
I. oxyrinchus
being equal in length (except that they are not; the upper is clearly longer). (
See ETYFish
)
;
oxyrinchus:
oxys
(Gr.), sharp or pointed;
rynchus
(L.), snout, referring to its pointed snout. (
See ETYFish
)
.
More on author:
Rafinesque
.
Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range
Ecology
Marine; pelagic-oceanic; oceanodromous (Ref.
51243
); depth range 0 - 888 m (Ref.
106604
), usually 100 - 150 m (Ref.
36731
). Subtropical; 16°C - ? (Ref.
9988
); 65°N - 54°S, 180°W - 180°E
Cosmopolitan in temperate and tropical seas (Ref.
6871
,
11230
). Western Atlantic: Gulf of Maine to southern Brazil and Argentina (Ref.
58839
), including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean. Eastern Atlantic: Norway to South Africa, including the Mediterranean. Indo-Pacific: East Africa to Hawaii, north to Primorskiy Kray (Russian Federation), south to Australia and New Zealand. Eastern Pacific: south of Aleutian Islands and from southern California, USA to Chile.
Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
Maturity: L
m
278.3
, range 275 - 285 cm
Max length : 445 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref.
106604
); common length : 270 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref.
5217
); max. published weight: 505.8 kg (Ref.
4699
); max. reported age: 32 years (Ref.
86588
)
Dorsal
spines
(total): 0;
Dorsal
soft rays
(total): 0;
Anal
spines
: 0;
Anal
soft rays
: 0. A large, spindle-shaped shark with large black eyes, a sharp snout, and large, narrow, hooked teeth with smooth edges (Ref.
5578
). Caudal fin lunate, lower lobe strongly developed (Ref.
13574
). Dark blue above, white below (Ref.
6581
). Tiny second dorsal and anal fins (Ref.
26938
).
Oceanic, but sometimes found close inshore (Ref.
6871
,
11230
,
58302
). Usually in surface waters (Ref.
30573
), down to about 150 m (Ref.
26938
,
11230
). Coastal, epipelagic at 1->500 m (Ref.
58302
). Isotope analysis has shown that shortfin mako is the highest level fish predator in oceanic waters off eastern Australia (Ref.
86961
). Adults feed on bony fishes, other sharks (Ref.
5578
), cephalopods; larger individuals may feed on larger prey such as billfish and small cetaceans (Ref.
6871
,
58048
). Ovoviviparous, embryos feeding on yolk sac and other ova produced by the mother (Ref.
43278
,
50449
). With 4-16 young of about 60-70 cm long (Ref.
35388
,
26346
). Gestation period lasts 15-18 months, spawning cycle is every 3 years. Some authors (Refs. 1661, 28081, 31395) have erroneously assumed that two age rings are deposited per year by this species, thus underestimating longevity, age at maturity, and resilience . These data have been removed and replaced by recent, verified estimates (Refs. 86586, 86587, 86588). Tagging in New Zealand indicates seasonal migrations (Ref.
26346
). The presence of genetic differentiation in mitochondrial DNA across global populations (Ref.
36416
) suggests dispersal may be male-biased, and that females may have natal site-fidelity. Shortfin mako has been shown to have a marked sexually segregated population structure (Ref.
86954
). Shortfin mako is probably the fastest of all sharks and can leap out of the water when hooked (Ref.
6871
). Potentially dangerous and responsible for unprovoked attacks on swimmers and boats (Ref.
13574
). Utilized fresh, dried or salted, smoked and frozen; eaten broiled and baked (Ref.
9988
). Valued for its fine quality meat as well as its fins and skin (Ref.
247
). Oil is extracted for vitamins and fins for shark-fin soup (Ref.
13574
). Jaws and teeth are also sold as ornaments and trophies (Ref.
9988
). by Kabasakal & de Maddalena, 2011 reported a historical record of a larger specimen, caught in the Mediterranean Sea off Turkey, about 585 cm (TL estimated from photographs) (Ref.
106604
). Maximum depth from Ref. 125614.
Exhibit ovoviparity (aplacental viviparity), with embryos feeding on other ova produced by the mother (oophagy) after the yolk sac is absorbed (Ref.
50449
). With up to 18 young in a litter (Ref.
26346
). Gives birth to litters of 4-25 (usually 10-18) pups after a gestation period of 15-18 months; reproduces every 3 years (Ref.58048). Size at birth between 60 and 70 cm (Ref.
247
). Distinct pairing with embrace (Ref.
205
).
Compagno, L.J.V.
, 1984. FAO Species Catalogue. Vol. 4. Sharks of the world. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of shark species known to date. Part 1 - Hexanchiformes to Lamniformes. FAO Fish. Synop. 125(4/1):1-249. Rome, FAO. (Ref.
247
)
Preferred temperature (Ref.
123201
): 9.7 - 24.4, mean 17.4 °C (based on 598 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref.
82804
): PD
50
= 0.7813 [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00646 (0.00386 - 0.01080), b=3.03 (2.88 - 3.18), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this species & (Sub)family-body (Ref.
93245
).
Trophic level (Ref.
69278
): 4.5 ±0.0 se; based on diet studies.
Resilience (Ref.
120179
): Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (rm=0.051; tm=8-20; tmax=32; Fec=4).
Prior r = 0.24, 95% CL = 0.11 - 0.54, Based on 3 stock assessments.
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref.
59153
): Very high vulnerability (79 of 100).
Climate Vulnerability (Ref.
125649
): High vulnerability (62 of 100).
Price category (Ref.
80766
):
Medium
.
Nutrients (Ref.
124155
): Calcium = 7.24 [2.04, 36.21] mg/100g; Iron = 0.713 [0.180, 2.070] mg/100g; Protein = 20.7 [18.3, 22.9] %; Omega3 = 0.383 [0.157, 0.916] g/100g; Selenium = 35.5 [11.1, 99.0] μg/100g; VitaminA = 6.35 [2.11, 19.61] μg/100g; Zinc = 0.32 [0.16, 0.59] mg/100g (wet weight); based on
nutrient studies.
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