Common names
Sägefisch, Pejepeine, Pejesierra, Pez sierra, Pez sierra commún, Pez sierra común, Sägefisch, Poisson-scie commun, Scie, Scie commune, Common sawfish, Largetooth sawfish, Sawfish, Small-toothed sawfish, Pesce sega, Araguaguá, Espadarte, Espadarte-serra, Peixe-serra, Tubarão-serra, Sija (malta)

Short Description
A sawfish with robust rostrum, noticeably diverging posteriorly (rostrum width between two posteriormost rostral teeth 1.7–2 times the width between the second anteriormost rostral teeth). The number of rostral teeth per side ranges from 14 to 23. Rostral teeth with groove on the posterior margin. First dorsal-fin origin well anterior to pelvic-fin origins. Lower lobe of the caudal fin well defined (lower anterior margin about half as long as the upper anterior margin). [17620]

Distribution
Eastern Pacific: Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, Ecuador, and Peru. Western Atlantic: USA, Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Caribbean Sea, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, and Brazil. Eastern Atlantic: Mediterranean, Senegal, Republic of Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola. Indo-West Pacific: South Africa, Zambia (Zambezi River), Mozambique (Zambezi River), Tanzania, Kenya, Madagascar, Pakistan, Gulf of Aden, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, Indonesia, Borneo, Philippines, Papua New Guinea, and Australia. Found in coastal, estuarine, and riverine habitats. [17620]
Bangladesh (see image of G. M. MASUM BILLAH, Program Coordinator- Marine Mega-Fauna & Fisheries, Wildlife Conservation Society- Bangladesh Program (masumwcsbd@gmail.com)) Source: www.gbif.org

Human uses
fisheries: minor commercial; price category: medium; price reliability: very questionable: based on ex-vessel price for species in this family

Biology
Ovoviviparous, embryos feed solely on yolk [733]. Inhabits inshore coastal waters to moderate depth, also around offlying islands. Found also in estuaries, lagoons, river mouths, and even freshwater. Feeds on fishes and bottom-living animals. Ovoviviparous. Freshwater populations occur to about 750 km up Amazon River; populations in Lake Nicaragua may be nonmigratory [17658]

Size / Weight / Age
TL (max): 656 cm, but possible over 700 cm, TL (mature): ~280 cm - 300 cm; TL (born): 72 cm - 90 cm [24867]; max. reported age: 30 years [17661]

Habitat
demersal; oceanodromous [17660]; freshwater; brackish; marine; depth range 0 - 25 m [24867]

Remarks
shark-references Species-ID=5083; CITES: (see: Protected Species for more details) Convention on International Trade in Endangered Speciesof Wild Fauna and Flora annex: I; Council Regulation 2017/160 annex: A; Faria et al. (2013) [17620] recently synonymized the species Pristis microdon (Latham, 1794) with P. pristis.

Parasites (arranged by Jürgen Pollerspöck)
Monogenea

• Dermopristis paradoxus Kearn, Whittington & Evans-Gowing, 2010 [15240]
• Erpocotyle caribbensis Watson & Thorson, 1976 [16440]
• Nonacotyle pristis Ogawa, 1991 [7239]
• Pristonchocotyle intermedia Watson & Thorson, 1976 [16440]
• Pristonchocotyle papuensis Ogawa, 1991 [7239]

Cestoda

• Anthobothrium pristis Woodland, 1934 [16440] [16969] [22567] [21220] [25154]
• Floriparicapitus juliani Cielocha, Jensen & Caira, 2014 [21566]
• Phyllobothrium pristis Watson & Thorson, 1976 [16440]
• Pterobothrium fragile (Diesing, 1850) [16283] [16112] [16112] [21220] [25154]

Nematoda

• Euterranova pristis (Baylis & Daubney, 1922) [17029]
• Terranova circularis (Linstow , 1907) [17029]

Copepoda

• Caligus furcisetifer Redkar, Rangnekar & Murti, 1949 [16612]
• Ergasilus sp. [7239]