Longnose sawshark

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Longnose sawshark

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Chondrichthyes
Subclass:	Elasmobranchii
Order:	Pristiophoriformes
Family:	Pristiophoridae
Genus:	Pristiophorus
Species:	P. cirratus

Binomial name

Pristiophorus cirratus
(Latham, 1794)

Range of longnose sawshark (in blue)

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The longnose sawshark, Pristiophorus cirratus, is a sawshark of the family Pristiophoridae, found in the eastern Indian Ocean around southern Australia on the continental shelf at depths of between 40 and 310 m. Its length is up to 1.35 m.

The longnose sawshark has a long, narrow, and narrowly tapering rostrum (rostrum length is 27% to 29% of total length), and the distance from the rostral tip to the barbels about equal or slightly greater than the distance from the barbels to the mouth; distance from the rostral barbels to the nostrils is slightly less or equal to the distance from the nostrils to the first to the fourth gill slits. There are about 9 to 10 large rostral teeth on each side of the rostrum in front of the barbels, and 9 behind them; the distance from the mouth to the nostrils is 1.3 to 1.4 times the internarial space. There are tooth rows of 39 to 49 in the upper jaw. The dorsal and pectoral fins are covered with denticles in large specimens. The lateral trunk denticles are largely unicuspidate. The first dorsal fin origin is behind the free rear tips of pectorals by an eye length or more. There is a body pattern of dark blotches (mostly darker bands between pectoral fin bases, over gill slits, between spiracles and below dorsal fins) and spots (occasionally faint). The nostrils, almost circular, are situated about 2/3 way from barbels to the corner of the mouth, the width at nostrils more than 4.5 in preoral snout in adults; preoral snout length more than 2.3 times distance from barbels to snout tip. The rostral teeth have dark margins, and the underside abruptly uniformly white. The first dorsal fin origin is behind the free rear tips of pectorals by an eye length or more. The caudal fin is almost straight, with slender upper and lower lobes, and the pectoral fin is well developed but not ray-like.

It forms schools, and feeds on small fishes, including cornet fishes (Fistularia), and crustaceans. Reproduction is ovoviviparous, with 3 to 22 young in a litter. The size at birth is about 31 to 34 cm. The longnose sawshark may live for more than 15 years. The flesh is utilized fresh and frozen, the meat being of excellent quality.