Greattooth Sawfish

About

The greattooth sawfish (Pristis microdon) is one of those species that feels like it belongs to a different era. And in many ways it does. Ranging across the Indo-West Pacific from East Africa to New Guinea, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Australia, this remarkable fish occupies shallow coastal waters, estuaries, river mouths, and the turbid, soft-bottomed channels of large rivers. Juveniles tend to push deep into freshwater systems, while adults are more commonly encountered in estuaries, though large individuals do occasionally turn up far upriver. The iconic rostrum, the elongated, tooth-lined snout that gives sawfish their name, is not just for show. It serves as a digging tool for rooting out bottom-dwelling prey and as a slashing weapon against schooling fish. Despite its shark-like appearance, this is a ray, and it carries its young live. Growing to around 4.6 meters, it is one of the largest purely freshwater-capable fish a keeper could theoretically consider, though "consider" is about as far as most of us should take it. The space requirements alone are staggering, and the species is critically threatened in the wild due to bycatch and the high commercial value of its fins, meat, and cartilage. This one is for the record books, not the living room.