A mako is most commonly a type of shark, specifically the shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus), widely regarded as the fastest shark in the ocean. The name also refers to the Mako robotic surgical system, used in joint replacement procedures. Here’s what you need to know about both.
The Shortfin Mako Shark
The shortfin mako is a large, powerful predator found in open oceans worldwide. Males average about 6.5 to 7 feet long, while females are considerably larger at 9 to 9.5 feet. The biggest individuals reach roughly 13 feet. Weights can be substantial: a shortfin mako caught off Nova Scotia in 2004 tipped the scales at 1,035 pounds. Ernest Hemingway, a passionate sport fisherman, landed a 786-pound mako off Bimini in the Bahamas in 1963.
Makos are true open-ocean animals. They range from the surface down to about 1,640 feet and prefer water above 60°F. You’ll occasionally find them near coastlines where the continental shelf drops off quickly, but they spend most of their lives far from shore. Their estimated lifespan is 29 to 32 years.
What Makes Makos So Fast
Makos are built for speed in ways most sharks aren’t. Direct measurements from tagged animals recorded burst speeds of about 11 miles per hour, with a maximum of just over 5 meters per second from a 6.5-foot female. Their cruising speed is much slower, around 2 miles per hour, with the tail beating roughly once every two seconds. Popular claims of makos hitting 45 or 60 mph remain unverified by scientific instruments, but even their confirmed speeds make them exceptionally fast for a shark.
The key to their performance is a trait called regional endothermy. Unlike most fish, makos can keep their muscles warmer than the surrounding water. They do this through a specialized network of blood vessels that acts as a heat exchanger, trapping metabolic warmth inside the body rather than losing it through the gills. During one recorded burst of swimming, a mako’s internal muscle temperature rose measurably within minutes. After intense activity, makos often glide with zero tail movement, essentially coasting to recover energy and avoid overheating their muscles.
Shortfin vs. Longfin Mako
There are actually two mako species. The longfin mako (Isurus paucus) is the lesser-known relative and differs in several visible ways. Longfin makos have noticeably longer pectoral fins, larger eyes, a different body shape overall, and a darker underside to the snout. The shortfin mako is far more commonly encountered and is the species people generally mean when they say “mako shark.”
Conservation Status
The shortfin mako is classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, a designation made in 2019. Overfishing is the primary threat, driven by both targeted commercial fishing and bycatch in longline fisheries. In 2019, the shortfin mako was added to Appendix II of CITES, the international treaty governing wildlife trade. This means that exporting mako products from participating countries now requires permits demonstrating the shark was sourced from legal, sustainable fisheries.
The Mako Robotic Surgical System
In medicine, “Mako” refers to a robotic-arm assisted surgery platform made by Stryker, used primarily for total knee replacements, partial knee replacements, and total hip replacements. It’s not a robot performing surgery on its own. A human surgeon controls every movement, with the robotic arm providing enhanced precision.
Before surgery, a CT scan of the patient’s hip, knee, and ankle is taken from multiple angles. Those images are used to build a virtual 3D model of the patient’s unique anatomy. The surgeon then plans the procedure digitally, selecting the implant size, orientation, and alignment before ever entering the operating room. During the actual surgery, the surgeon can adjust that plan in real time while guiding the robotic arm.
How the Robotic Arm Adds Precision
One of the system’s key features is haptic feedback, essentially a set of virtual boundaries programmed into the robotic arm. If the surgeon’s movements approach tissue outside the predefined surgical plan, the arm resists, acting like an invisible wall. This prevents accidental cuts into healthy bone or surrounding structures and keeps the procedure tightly within the planned zone.
Who It’s For and What Recovery Looks Like
The Mako system is commonly used for people with osteoarthritis that has damaged part or all of a knee joint, or who need a hip replaced. If only one section of the knee is affected, surgeons can replace just that portion rather than the entire joint. Not every patient who needs a joint replacement is a candidate for the robotic approach, so eligibility depends on the specifics of the damage.
Research comparing robotic-assisted and traditional manual knee replacements in the same patients (one knee done each way) found meaningful differences. Patients who had the robotic procedure walked without assistance in an average of 10 days, compared to nearly 13 days for the manually replaced knee. Pain during physical therapy was also significantly different: about 78% of patients reported worse pain after the manual surgery, while only 9% said the robotic side hurt more. Hospital stays for both approaches were typically two days.