 There are seven species in this family. They are found in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. Sawfish have shark-like bodies, but they are not sharks. They are rays. They have two dorsal fins and a caudal fin. They have an extremely long, blade-like snout that is edged with sharp teeth! Their gill slits are on their ventral (abdominal) side.
Sawfish are found close to shore in shallow waters usually at depths of no more than 30 feet where they rest on sandy or muddy bottoms. They often swim up into estuaries and rivers. The smalltooth sawfish is found in the waters of
the Gulf of Mexico from Texas to Florida and along the east coast from Florida to New York. The smalltooth sawfish is around 18 feet long and eats small fish and crustaceans. It is an endangered species in the United States. Their long, teeth-edged snouts often cause them to become entangled in fishing nets. Loss of habitat and hunting have also led to declines in their population. World Status Key
 Least Concern  Near Threatened  Vulnerable  Endangered  Critically Endangered  Extinct in Wild  Extinct
Status taken from ICUN Redlist. If no status is listed, there is not enough data to establish status, or there is no status data for the species.
US Status Key
 Threatened in US  Threatened in NH  Endangered in US  Endangered in NH  Introduced
Status taken from US Fish and Wildlife and NH Fish and Game
Additional Information Resource Key
 Profile  Photos  Video  Audio
Dwarf Sawfish - Pristis clavata   
The dwarf sawfish is found off the coast of northern Australia.
Source: Florida Museum of Natural History Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School
Dwarf Sawfish - Pristis clavata
The dwarf sawfish is smaller than other sawfish species
Source: Arkive Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School
Green Sawfish - Pristis zijsron  
The green sawfish is found in coastal waters of the Indian and western Pacific oceans.
Source: Florida Museum of Natural History Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School
Green Sawfish - Pristis zijsron
The green sawfish is greenish brown or olive in color, with pale white to yellowish underparts.
Source: Arkive Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School Freshwater Sawfish - Pristis microdon
The freshwater sawfish is found in coastal waters off of Africa and east to India and Pakistan and south to the East Indies, Thailand, Indonesia and Australia.
Source: Florida Museum of Natural History Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School
Freshwater Sawfish - Pristis microdon
The freshwater sawfish is also known as Leichhardt’s sawfish.
Source: Arkive Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School
Knifetooth Sawfish - Anoxypristis cuspidata
The knifetooth sawfish is found in the Indo-Pacific Ocean region from the Northern Africa and the Middle East east to Australia and China and Japan.
Source: Florida Museum of Natural History Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School
Knifetooth Sawfish - Anoxypristis cuspidata
The knifetooth sawfish is found in inshore coastal waters.
Source: Arkive Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School
Largetooth Sawfish - Pristis perotteti   
The largetooth sawfish is found in the Atlantic Ocean along the coast of Africa and along the Gulf Coast of the United States south to South America.
Source: Florida Museum of Natural History Intended Audience: General Reading Level: High School
Largetooth Sawfish - Pristis perotteti
The largetooth sawfish can grow to be as long as 20 feet.
Source: NOAA Fisheries Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School
Smalltooth Sawfish - Pristis pectinata 
The smalltooth sawfish is found in tropical and subtropical Atlantic Ocean waters from New York to Brazil. They are also found off the coast of Africa from Gibraltar to the southwest coast of Africa.
Source: Florida Museum of Natural History Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School
Smalltooth Sawfish - Pristis pectinata
The smalltooth sawfish's teeth are smaller than the teeth of other sawfish.
Source: Arkive Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School
Smalltooth Sawfish - Pristis pectinata
The smalltooth sawfish is one of two species of sawfish that is found U.S. waters.
Source: NOAA Fisheries Intended Audience: General Reading Level: Middle School |
NH Species 
Arctic Ocean 
Mediterranean/Black Sea