Talk about going the extra mile! Shark travels half way around the world in just 600 days in new world record

The shark travelled over 13,000 miles (20,900km) in less than 24 months
It took in the underwater sights of Maryland, Nova Scotia and Bermuda
Because of its record breaking travels, it has been nicknamed 'Energizer Bunny'

By MailOnline Reporter

Published: 12:59 EST, 27 January 2017 | Updated: 12:59 EST, 27 January 2017

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A new record has been broken by a mako shark that has travelled over 13,000 miles (20,900km) in under two years.

Named Hell's Bay, the male mako travelled a distance equal to over halfway around the Earth.

He has been dubbed 'Energizer Bunny' for his travels, which took him around the east coast of the US.

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A new record has been broken by a mako shark that has travelled over 13,000 miles (20,900km) in under two years. Named Hell's Bay, the male mako travelled a distance equal to over halfway around the Earth

MAKO SHARKS

Mako sharks are well-adapted and active open water sharks.

Like their cousin, the great white, they keep their body temperature warmer than the surrounding water using a high metabolic rate and efficient heat-exchange system.

They are excellent swimmers, reaching sustained speeds of 21mph (35 km/h) with bursts to over 50mph (80 km/h).

These sharks have rapid growth rates, twice as fast as some of the other shark species.

Males mature at around two months, while females mature at about 2.6 months.

They usually grow to be around four metres long, and weigh over 500 kilograms.

The discovery was made by researchers at Florida's Nova Southeastern University, who tagged and tracked the finned creature from May 2015.

It was first tagged off the coast of Ocean City in Maryland, before heading off on the first half of his journey which took him north along the eastern seaboard.

He then made a return near the original tagging site, before spending 2016 jaunting throughout the Atlantic, exploring Nova Scotia, taking in Bermuda and then finally heading back to Ocean City.

Mako sharks are known to be excellent swimmers, reaching sustained speeds of 21mph (35 km/h) with bursts to over 50mph (80 km/h).

'We've had some of our tagged makos take some pretty interesting tracks over the years, but this one swims above the rest,' Professor Mahmood Shivji, who helped track the shark – told Fox News.

'Having Hell's Bay report for as long as he has is fantastic because we're able to really get a detailed look at mako migration behaviour over a good amount of time.'

'He was like the Energizer bunny – he kept going and going and going, and luckily did not get captured like many of our other sharks.'

So far this year, the mako has been following a similar pattern to last year, but closer to the coastline of Maryland.

'These satellite tags allow us to follow sharks in near-real time,' said Greg Jacoski, executive director of the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation.

'Understanding where these animals travel and the habitat that they use is the first step to better conserving the species.'

The researchers say the movements of Hell's Bay show clear seasonal patterns in which he spent the winter and early spring offshore and the other season on or close to the continental shelf.

The shark's tag is still active and his movements can be tracked on a this website.

It was first tagged off the coast of Ocean City in Maryland, before heading off on the first half of his journey which took him north along the eastern seaboard

HELL'S BAY'S ROUTE

The mako shark was tagged as it set off on its journey off the coast of Ocean City, Maryland.

From there, he headed north along the eastern seaboard.

Then he turned back to Ocean City, before heading off to the Atlantic.

He explored Nova Scotia and Bermuda before heading back to Ocean City.

This is part of a larger study by the Guy Harvey Research Institute where it was reported that 22 per cent of the makos that have been satellite tagged were found to have been caught or killed by fishermen.

'That highlights what mako sharks face on a daily basis in their natural habitat,' Professor Shivji said.

'It's something we have to work around, but every time we lose a shark we lose another opportunity to learn about these magnificent animals.'

Recent estimates suggest that between 70-100 million sharks are killed every year.

On top of this, many shark species, including makos, have a low reproductive rate.