Searching for 'Makozilla' — the supersized mako sharks in the North Pacific

In 2013, fishers off Southern California reeled in an enormous, 11-foot-long (3.3 meters) mako shark. At over 1,300 pounds (590 kilograms), the animal — dubbed "The Beast" — was one of the heaviest mako sharks ever recorded. 

In recent years, seals along the California coast have been found with wounds indicating they'd been attacked by large shortfin mako sharks (Isurus oxyrinchus) measuring over 12 feet (3.6 m) long. 

Shortfin makos tend to grow to around 7 feet (2.1 m) long, on average, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. But they can get much bigger. In the 1950s, off the coast of Turkey, fishers reeled in a mako measuring over 19 feet (5.8 m) long. 

In the new Shark Week show "Makozilla," shark biologist and wildlife presenter Craig O'Connell went looking for supersized makos to find out if only one shark had grown to a mammoth size, or if the individuals in the North Pacific population are now much larger than they once were. 

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"Are there more absolutely massive makos out there, and how are they related?" O'Connell told Live Science. "Is it one particular family of makos, or is this a characteristic of the entire population along the coast of California?"

Through a series of experiments, the team gathered bite impressions on bait and measured the Animals as they swam alongside the boat. One shark was at least 12 feet (3.7 m) long, while an analysis of the bite marks revealed another was at least 14 feet (4.3 m) long.