Critically Endangered Sawfish Found With Saws Removed: ‘Cruel’

Four critically endangered sawfish have been discovered dead in Western Australia, with their characteristic saw-like rostrums chopped off.

The fish were found at Cleaverville Creek on Friday, around 900 miles north of Perth, Western Australia’s Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD told ABC News Australia.

ABC News Australia reported that a DPIRD spokesperson said they were informed of the dead fish after a member of the public tipped them off. They were investigating what had happened and officers had been sent to measure the sawfish and take tissue samples.

The exact species of these fish has not yet been confirmed. However, David Morgan, an aquatic ecosystems expert at Murdoch University in Perth, told ABC Australia that they were likely green sawfish, and had been killed for their rostrums to use as trophies.

“It’s a real shame that these four animals were killed just for a trophy,” he said. “Someone just wants to stick it on their wall. They’re like elephant tusks and rhino horn.”

“Not only is it illegal, but it’s cruel.”

Despite their sharklike appearances, sawfish are a type of ray. There are five species, all of which used to be abundant, but are now rated as either “endangered” or “critically endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

Green sawfish are categorized as critically endangered on the Red List. According to the Sawfish Conservation Society, green sawfish can grow up to 20 feet long, and have long, toothed “saws” or rostrums with between 23 and 37 teeth taking up around a quarter of their total body length.

These fish are listed as “vulnerable” by Australia’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, and are protected across Western Australia, Queensland and the Northern Territory.

Their populations have seen huge declines as a result of deliberate fishing, for their fins and meat for use in traditional medicine or in shark fin soup, as well as for their saws.

These sawfish are also affected by habitat loss across, and by accidental bycatch and entanglement in fishing gear. It is thought that their populations have decreased by around 80 percent over the past three generations.

Western Australia’s north is one of the last remaining hotspots of the fish, so the fact that these four carcasses were found in that region is disappointing, Morgan said.

“I was hoping we’d woken up to the fact that we are housing these critically endangered species,” he said.

“They are an iconic species. People should really put a big sign up saying: ‘Welcome to sawfish country.'”

According to the DPIRD spokesperson, those responsible for the death of the sawfish could face fines totaling 25,000 Australian dollars ($16,700).

Newsweek has asked the DPIRD for comment via email.

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