Multiple Paternity of Shortfin Mako Shark
In the present study, we successfully reevaluated the mating system of
and multiple paternity in Isurus
oxyrinchus.
Paternity tests of three litters as bycatch from a longline fishery
operating in the area between Taiwan and mainland Japan showed that an
average of 4.6 sires were assigned to each litter of I. oxyrinchus
by COLONY software, and that the average number of sires dropped to 2.5
when using GERUD. These findings suggest that multiple paternity could
be a common reproductive strategy used by the shortfin mako shark, and
that this mating system should be integrated into a demographic model
to make more accurate population projections and risk analyses in the
future.

Photo of a female Isurus
oxyrinchus as bycatch at Nanfangao Fishing Port (Photo provided
by Dr. Hua-Hsun Hsu)
Read the full article, published by Zoological
Studies, here
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