It turns out that the sawfish is not a fish at all, but a stingray. Although outwardly it resembles a shark and reaches a length of up to 5 m. A case is documented when a sawfish was caught, reaching a length of 6 m and weighing 2400 kg!
What kind of fish is this - saw?
The scientific name of this creature is the ordinary saw. The sawfish belongs to the family of cartilaginous fish (like the shark) and to the superorder of rays. This creation received its name and wide popularity due to its appearance. The sawfish has an elongated body, strikingly similar to a shark, but perhaps the most striking external feature that distinguishes it from other fish and rays is the so-called "saw" - a long and flat outgrowth of the snout, on the sides of which there are sharp teeth of the same size. It is curious that this "saw" is almost a quarter of the body length of the entire fish! The skin of the sawfish has various shades of olive-gray, and the belly is almost white.
On the shark-like body of the sawfish there are 2 fins on each side and 2 dorsal fins of a triangular shape. In some species of saw-nosed rays, the tail part smoothly passes into the body, merging with it, but there are also those species in which the tail and body are divided into two sections by the caudal fin. It is curious that the similarity of these fish to sharks does not end only with the shape of their body: sawnails, like sharks, have skin covered with placoid scales. Currently, only 7 species of sawnose rays are known: green, Atlantic, European, fine-toothed, Australian, Asian and comb.
Where does the sawfish live?
The sawfish feels comfortable in both fresh and salt waters, and lives in all oceans with the exception of the Arctic. A favorite place for saw-cut rays is coastal waters. This creature is difficult to find in the open oceans. Sawfish love to bask in shallow water. It is curious that 5 of the 7 currently known species of sawmills live off the coast of Australia. In general, the Australian species of sawmills has long been accustomed to freshwater bodies, where it lives without swimming into the ocean. The only place where sawn rays cannot live is water polluted with various debris and waste.
Sawfish and Pylon Shark are not the same thing
Saw rays are often confused with sawnose sharks. They are not the same fish! Of course, sharks are the closest relatives of stingrays, since they belong to the same family of cartilaginous fish, but they are two different species of underwater animals. The snout of the pylon-nosed shark is elongated and flattened, similar to a sword, and studded with large teeth. This creature lives in the warm waters of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Pilonos are bottom and sluggish fish that feed on small fish and small bottom animals.
Sawfish are considered to be larger fish than pylonos. A case is described when a saw-fish weighing 2400 kg and a length of 6 m was caught! For comparison: pylon-noses rarely grow up to 1.5 m in length. Sawmills, like their "comrades-in-arms", feed on small animals living in the ground. They dig them out of the silt with their "saw", using it both as a shovel and as a rake. Often, the sawfish wields its nose, like a saber or a sword, bursting into a flock of small mullets or sardines, and then swallows "defeated" enemies.
Sawfish - ovoviviparous fish
Sawfish belong to ovoviviparous fish: their young are born as fully formed fish, but in the shell of a leathery egg. Zoologists who have observed saw-nosed rays have found that their females can give birth to up to 20 fry at a time! The "saw" in these fry is formed in the womb, but their stigma is still very soft, and the teeth are completely hidden by the skin and harden only with time. By the way, sawnose sharks give birth in the same way.
