Anoxypristis cuspidata, Pointed sawfish : fisheries, gamefish

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Anoxypristis cuspidata (Latham, 1794)

Pointed sawfish
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Native range | All suitable habitat | Point map | Year 2050
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Anoxypristis cuspidata   AquaMaps   Data sources: GBIF OBIS
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Image of Anoxypristis cuspidata (Pointed sawfish)
Anoxypristis cuspidata
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Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes(genus, species) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Elasmobranchii (sharks and rays) > Rhinopristiformes (Shovelnose rays) > Pristidae (Sawfishes)
Etymology: Anoxypristis: Greek, ana = up + Greek, oxy = sharp, pointed + Greek, pristis = saw (Ref. 45335).

Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range Ecology

Marine; freshwater; brackish; benthopelagic; amphidromous (Ref. 51243); depth range 0 - 40 m (Ref. 9859), usually ? - 40 m (Ref. 55270). Tropical; 43°N - 20°S, 30°E - 160°E (Ref. 114953)

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Indo-West Pacific: widespread, Red Sea to eastern Australia, north to Japan.

Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: Lm 264.0, range 246 - 282 cm
Max length : 470 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 9859)

Short description Morphology | Morphometrics

Greyish above, pale below; fins usually pale. Body shark-like, pectoral fins distinct; head flattened, with a blade-like snout bearing 18-22 pairs of lateral teeth; blade slender, not tapering distally. Nostrils very narrow with small nasal flaps. Rostral teeth short, flattened, broadly triangular, lacking a groove along posterior margins; no teeth on basal quarter of blade. Adults with widely spaced denticles, young with naked skin.

Biology     Glossary (e.g. epibenthic)

Found inshore, often in river deltas and estuaries; penetration well up rivers needs confirmation (Ref. 9859). Common in sheltered bays with sandy bottoms. More active swimmer than other sawfishes (Ref. 114953). Feeds on small fish, cuttlefish (Ref. 9859) and small benthic invertebrates such as prawns (Ref. 114953). Ovoviviparous (Ref. 50449). Most fecund sawfish, reported to reach sexual maturity at 2-3 years (Ref. 114953). Females have litters of approximately 12 pups (Ref. 114953). Generally harmless but its saw-like snout may cause serious injury when caught: it is known thrash violently and vigorously (Ref. 9859). Caught for its flesh and liver (which is rich in oil) in some parts of Asia (Ref. 6871). Maximum lengths of up to 610 cm TL are based on unconfirmed reports (Ref. 9859).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Ovoviviparous. Litter size from 6 to 23, young born in the spring (Ref. 9859).

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : McEachran, John | Collaborators

Mould, B., 1994. A world list of rays. The scientific nomenclature and distribution of the recent Batoidea (Batoidea, Elasmobranchii, Chondrichthyes). University of Nottingham, [UK]. 82 p. (Ref. 8630)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 130435)

  Critically Endangered (CR) (A2cd); Date assessed: 29 March 2022

CITES


Threat to humans

  Harmless (Ref. 9859)





Human uses

Fisheries: commercial; gamefish: yes
FAO - Publication: search | FishSource |

More information

Countries
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Common names
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Internet sources

AFORO (otoliths) | Aquatic Commons | BHL | Cloffa | BOLDSystems | Websites from users | Check FishWatcher | CISTI | Catalog of Fishes: genus, species | DiscoverLife | ECOTOX | FAO - Publication: search | Faunafri | Fishipedia | Fishtrace | GenBank: genome, nucleotide | GloBI | Google Books | Google Scholar | Google | IGFA World Record | MitoFish | National databases | Otolith Atlas of Taiwan Fishes | PubMed | Reef Life Survey | Socotra Atlas | Tree of Life | Wikipedia: Go, Search | World Records Freshwater Fishing | Zoological Record

Estimates based on models

Preferred temperature (Ref. 123201): 24.6 - 29.1, mean 28.2 °C (based on 1982 cells).
Phylogenetic diversity index (Ref. 82804):  PD50 = 1.0078   [Uniqueness, from 0.5 = low to 2.0 = high].
Bayesian length-weight: a=0.00501 (0.00198 - 0.01270), b=3.05 (2.83 - 3.27), in cm total length, based on LWR estimates for this (Sub)family-body shape (Ref. 93245).
Trophic level (Ref. 69278):  4.5   ±0.62 se; based on food items.
Resilience (Ref. 120179):  Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (Fec assumed to be <100).
Fishing Vulnerability (Ref. 59153):  Very high vulnerability (90 of 100).
Price category (Ref. 80766):   Medium.