The short fin mako is one of the most mysterious fish in the ocean. Research is hard to find on these type of sharks, which makes the new research by Harte Research Institute’s Center for Sportfish Science and Conservation, pretty interesting.
Researchers at the Sportfish Center were astonished when they saw that their recent tagged mako, Pico, swam more than 4,000 nautical miles from the Western Gulf of Mexico to the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean.
The Sportfish center uses specific tags that send a signal to a satellite, in which the scientists can track their progress. Mako’s are also considered the fastest fish in the sea, which makes Pico’s trek more fascinating, he travelled as much as 156 miles in just 72 hours.
Sportfish Center Director Dr. Greg Stunz tells KRIS 6, that this new information shows that these mako’s are migrating to different oceans meaning there are different management territorial zones. This is important because there have been concerns about over-fishing on sharks.
Doctoral student Kesley Gibson tagged Pico, and has been following his every move. She says his journey to the Atlantic is interesting because he has gone on a completely different path than previous tagged mako’s that had similar size and measurements.
Gibson explains that although this is interesting there is still so much more to learn about mako’s and their migration patterns.
You can track Pico’s journey and all other tagged sharks by the Sportfish Center on http://www.ocearch.org/
