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The shortfin mako shark (Isurus oxyrinchus) is considered one of the most important top predators in pelagic marine food webs. The diet of the shortfin mako shark was studied in northern Peru through the analysis of 25 stomach contents. Cephalopods were the most important prey group, followed by bony fishes and crustaceans. A total of 11 prey species were identified, with the Humboldt squid Dosidicus gigas being the most important prey, followed by the Ancistrocheirus lesueurii squid. The trophic level was 4.3 (tertiary predator) and the trophic niche width was 0.47 (intermediate degree of specialization). This study contributes to the limited knowledge about the ecology of the shortfin mako shark in northern Peru. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Peruvian sea represents one of the most productive ocean ecosystems and possesses one of the largest elasmobranch fisheries in the Pacific Ocean. Ecosystem‐based management of these fisheries will require information on the trophic ecology of elasmobranchs. This study aimed to understand the diet, trophic interactions and the role of nine commercial elasmobranch species in northern Peru through the analysis of stomach contents. A total of 865 non‐empty stomachs were analysed. Off northern Peru, elasmobranchs function as upper‐trophic‐level species consuming 78 prey items, predominantly teleosts and cephalopods. Two distinctive trophic assemblages were identified: (a) sharks (smooth hammerhead shark Sphyrna zygaena, thresher shark Alopias spp. and blue shark Prionace glauca) that feed mainly on cephalopods in the pelagic ecosystem; and (b) sharks and batoids (Chilean eagle ray Myliobatis chilensis, humpback smooth‐hound Mustelus whitneyi, spotted houndshark Triakis maculata, Pacific guitarfish Pseudobatos planiceps, copper shark Carcharhinus brachyurus and school shark Galeorhinus galeus) that feed mainly on teleosts and invertebrates in the benthonic and pelagic coastal ecosystem. This study reveals for the first time the diet of T. maculata and the importance of elasmobranchs as predators of abundant and commercial species (i.e., jumbo squid Dosidicus gigas and Peruvian anchovy Engraulis ringens). The results of this study can assist in the design of an ecosystem‐based management for the northern Peruvian sea and the conservation of these highly exploited, threatened or poorly understood group of predators in one of the most productive marine ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]