Home to largetooth Sawfish “Sienna”, approximately 20 years old, Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo celebrates International Sawfish Day.

International Sawfish Day, the annual event held globally on October 17, is celebrated to raise awareness about these vulnerable rays and highlights the threats they face, as well as measures that can be undertaken to safeguard their future.

Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo marked the awareness day with special talks on their conservation and protection as part of the sawfish feeding session, held every day at 13:45 pm.

Sawfishes belong to the same family as sharks, rays and skates. They are considered the world’s most threatened of the elasmobranchs, which are fish that have a skeleton made of cartilage, and yet few people know about these amazingly unique animals.

Despite their importance, all five species—the largetooth sawfish, the smalltooth sawfish, the green sawfish, the dwarf sawfish and the narrow sawfish—are listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. The International Union of Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists two of these species, the narrow and dwarf sawfish, as endangered and the other three—smalltooth, green and largetooth sawfish—as critically endangered. Populations are consistently on the decline due to habitat destruction, fishing and detrimental practices such as finning, and hence its imperative to spread awareness about these wonderful species.

Did you know?

• Sawfish’s snout is a long, flat blade that has about 20 teeth on either side. This snout may be used to catch fish, and also to detect passing prey.
• The sawfish’s most distinctive feature is the saw-like rostrum, covered with electrosensitive pores that allow the sawfish to detect slight movements of prey hiding in the muddy sea floor.
• Sawfish are part of the group that contains sharks, skates, and rays. There are over 1,000 species of elasmobranchs.
• Sawfish are over 20 feet long. According to NOAA, the maximum length of a smalltooth sawfish is 25 feet. The green sawfish, which lives off Africa, Asia, and Australia, can reach about 24 feet.
• Sawfish live in shallow waters, often with muddy or sandy bottoms. They may also swim up rivers.
• Reproduction occurs through internal fertilization in these species. Depending on the species, gestation may last from several months to a year. The pups are born with their saw fully developed, but it is sheathed and flexible to avoid injuring the mother at birth.