Characterized by their long, flattened, toothed rostrum, often referred to as "the saw," the smalltooth sawfish is the only species of sawfish found in Florida.
FWC biologists have been studying this endangered species for over two decades, tagging and sampling mostly juveniles in the Caloosahatchee River, Peace River, Charlotte Harbor, and St. Lucie River. They recently tagged the 1,000th sawfish as part of this research.
"Back when we started this work over 20 years ago, the thought of tagging a thousand sawfish wasn't a goal," said project lead Dr. Gregg Poulakis. "We just wanted to learn as much as we could to help promote recovery, since the species is only found in Florida and the western Bahamas these days. A thousand is certainly a milestone to appreciate, but there's a lot more to do."
By collecting fin samples, biologists can learn more about the biology and ecology of the smalltooth sawfish, including population health and stability.
Learn more about FWRI's Sawfish Research on our website.
