Shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus), illustration

Regulated · catch and release Isurus oxyrinchus

Shortfin mako in Los Cabos

The jumping shark of the open ocean, and one of the most impressive fish an angler can see. Off Baja's Pacific coast it's also a species in trouble, which is why we release every one.

Up to 4.45 mMax length

1,221 lbIGFA world record

~20 yearsAge females start breeding

EndangeredIUCN Red List

Season in Los Cabos

Jan●●Feb●●Mar●●Apr●●May●Jun·Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov·Dec●

●● best months · ● regular · · occasional. Based on local fishing reports; conditions change year to year.

Tap a month to see everything biting in Cabo that month ›

How to recognize it

Torpedo-shaped, with a metallic blue back, a white belly, a pointed conical snout, large black eyes and slender, smooth-edged, hooked teeth. The tail is crescent-shaped, with a strong keel at its base.

Biology

Makos live in open ocean in temperate and tropical seas worldwide, usually in water of 17–22 °C, and tagged sharks have dived to nearly 1,000 m. Bahía Sebastián Vizcaíno, on Baja's Pacific coast, is one of the two known mako nurseries in the eastern North Pacific, and the coast from Bahía Magdalena to Laguna San Ignacio may be another.

They hunt squid, tuna, swordfish and other sharks; young makos off Baja California Sur eat mostly Humboldt squid, searobins and chub mackerel. Females give birth to 4 to 25 live pups after a pregnancy of 15 to 18 months, only every three years. Males mature at about 8 years and females at about 20, and they live at least 28 to 32 years. That slow pace is why they can't take heavy fishing.

Things you probably didn't know

Pups that eat eggs

Before birth, mako pups use up their yolk and then feed on unfertilized eggs their mother keeps producing.

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How fast, really?

The "70 km/h" figure you'll read everywhere has never been measured. The fastest speed recorded on a tagged wild mako is about 18 km/h in a burst, and the height of their leaps suggests escape speeds above 35 km/h.

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A warm-bodied shark

Like tuna, makos keep their swimming muscles warmer than the water around them, which helps them hunt in cold, deep water.

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Aged with atomic bombs

Scientists confirmed how long makos live using radiocarbon left in the ocean by nuclear bomb tests in the 1950s and 60s, which shows up in the growth bands of their vertebrae.

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12,000 miles a year

Makos tagged off the U.S. West Coast ranged from Washington to Baja California and out to Hawaii, some covering nearly 12,000 miles in a year and returning to the same areas year after year.

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Born off Baja

Bahía Sebastián Vizcaíno is a mako nursery: the young sharks studied there were newborns to two-year-olds.

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Photos

Shortfin mako, photo 1 (Mexico) — Fábio Olmos · iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0

Shortfin mako, photo 2 — iNaturalist contributor · iNaturalist · CC0

Shortfin mako, photo 3 — iNaturalist contributor · iNaturalist · CC0

Shortfin mako, photo 4 (Southland, NZ-SO) — Elias Freyhof · iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0

Shortfin mako, photo 5 — iNaturalist contributor · iNaturalist · CC0

Shortfin mako, photo 6 (Azores, PT) — Michel Frisch · iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0

How it's caught in Los Cabos

Off Los Cabos, makos are most often reported offshore from winter into spring, with March and April the strongest months. They're usually found with a chum slick and baits such as mackerel, tuna or squid, and when hooked they're famous for leaping clear of the water.

We release every mako. Best practice: circle hooks that aren't stainless steel, keep the shark in the water, unhook it quickly or cut the leader close to the hook, and hold it facing forward while the boat moves slowly so water runs over its gills. In one study of tagged makos released this way, 90% survived.

On the table

We don't keep makos. The species is endangered, and a released mako can be caught, and seen, again.

Rules, records & conservation

Daily limit (NOM-017-PESC-1994)	Sharks: 1 per angler per day, and it counts as 5 of the 10 fish
Closed season (Pacific)	All shark species, May 1 – July 31; no shark fishing during the closure
IUCN Red List	Endangered (2019): about 47% global decline over three generations
CITES	Appendix II since 2019: international trade needs permits
IGFA all-tackle record	1,221 lb (553.8 kg), Chatham, Massachusetts, 2001

Top Anglers practices catch-and-release for all sharks.

Don't confuse it with

The longfin mako has much longer pectoral fins, bigger eyes and a dusky mouth. The white shark has large triangular, serrated teeth and a black spot behind the pectoral fin. The blue shark is slender and bright blue, with very long pectoral fins and a long, rounded snout.

Questions

Can you keep a mako shark in Mexico?

By law a sport angler may keep one shark per day outside the Pacific closed season (May 1 – July 31). The mako is endangered, and we release every one.

How fast is a mako shark?

The popular 70 km/h figure has never been measured. Tagged makos have been clocked at about 18 km/h in bursts, and their leaps suggest more than 35 km/h.