Fish crepuscular

Smalltooth Sawfish

Pristis pectinata

A prehistoric wonder of the shallows, the Smalltooth Sawfish is easily recognized by its incredible tooth-lined rostrum. Once common along the Atlantic coast, this rare ray is now a prized sight for coastal observers and conservationists alike.

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Quick Identification

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Size

Typically 10–15 feet (3–4.5 meters) long, with large adults reaching 17 feet (5.2 meters); weight can exceed 700 lbs (320 kg).

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Colors

Dorsal side is olive, brownish-gray, or pale brown; ventral side (underside) is white or cream-colored.

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Key Features

Elongated, flat rostrum (saw) with 24-32 teeth on each side
Shark-like body with two large dorsal fins
Flattened head with gill slits on the underside
Tail fin with a small lower lobe compared to sharks

When You’ll See Them

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Activity pattern crepuscular

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Peak hours Dusk and dawn, though they are known to forage throughout the night.

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Season Year-round, with increased juvenile activity in Florida shallows from March to July.

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Diet Small schooling fish like mullet and herring, along with crustaceans and mollusks unearthed from the seafloor.

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Habitat Coastal estuaries, mangroves, and shallow bays with muddy or sandy bottoms; occasionally found in lower reaches of freshwater rivers.

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Behavior

The Smalltooth Sawfish is a specialized ray that spends much of its life near the muddy or sandy bottom of shallow coastal waters. Despite its formidable appearance, it is a non-aggressive species that uses its saw-like rostrum as both a hunting tool and a sensory organ. The rostrum is covered in electroreceptors that allow the sawfish to detect the faint electric fields of prey hiding in murky water, making them highly effective hunters even in low visibility.

When hunting, the sawfish utilizes a side-to-side thrashing motion to stun or impale small schooling fish, or to disturb the seabed to find hidden crustaceans. They are generally solitary animals but are often found in high concentrations within 'nursery' areas, such as mangrove-fringed estuaries, where juveniles can stay safe from larger predators like bull sharks. As they mature, they move into deeper, saltier waters, though they remain tied to the coastal shelf.

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Camera Tips

Capturing a Smalltooth Sawfish on camera is an extraordinary feat that is usually only possible for those with waterfront properties or docks in South Florida. To capture these bottom-dwellers, you will need an underwater camera setup, such as a GoPro with a long-duration battery housing or a specialized underwater trail camera. Mount the camera to a dock piling or a weighted tripod about 12 to 18 inches above the seabed, angling it slightly upward to ensure the silhouette of the rostrum is visible as they glide past.

Because Smalltooth Sawfish are most active during the low-light hours of dawn, dusk, and night, your camera must have excellent low-light performance. Infrared (IR) lighting is preferred over white light, as bright white LEDs can startle the fish or attract clouds of baitfish that will obscure your view. If you are using a motion-triggered system, set the sensitivity to its highest level; the slow, fluid movement of a cruising sawfish can sometimes fail to trigger sensors calibrated for faster land animals.

Location is everything. Focus your camera placement near natural bottlenecks, such as the edges of mangrove roots or the mouths of narrow canals, which act as highways for traveling sawfish. While it is strictly illegal to bait or chum for sawfish due to their Critically Endangered status, placing your camera in areas where mullet naturally congregate will significantly improve your odds. Avoid areas with heavy boat traffic, as the acoustic noise can drive these sensitive rays into deeper water.

If you are filming in an estuary, be mindful of the tides. A camera positioned perfectly at low tide might be too deep for its wireless signal to reach the surface at high tide, or it may become covered in silt. Regularly clean the lens of your underwater housing, as algae and barnacles can grow quickly in warm Florida waters, ruining your chance of a clear shot. If you do capture a sawfish, remember to share the footage with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) to help with their population recovery tracking.

Similar Species

Species that look similar or are commonly confused with Smalltooth Sawfish.

Largetooth Sawfish

The largetooth sawfish has a first dorsal fin that starts well in front of the pelvic fins, whereas the smalltooth's dorsal fin is positioned directly above the pelvic fins.

Lace-pored Shovelnose Ray

These rays have a pointed, triangular snout but lack the long, tooth-lined rostrum characteristic of the sawfish.

Frequently Asked Questions

Smalltooth Sawfish are primarily crepuscular and nocturnal, meaning they are most active during the twilight hours of dawn and dusk, as well as throughout the night when they move into shallower water to hunt.

You should never attempt to attract Smalltooth Sawfish with food, as they are a protected, endangered species and 'chumming' for them is illegal. Instead, maintain a healthy waterfront environment with natural mangroves and avoid using harsh chemicals on your lawn that could run off into their habitat.

Their diet consists mainly of small fish like mullet and clupeids (herring family). They also use their saw to dig for crustaceans like shrimp and crabs buried in the sandy bottom.

They are only found in specific subtropical regions, primarily in Southwest Florida. In these areas, they are occasionally seen in backyard canals, though they remain very rare due to their critically endangered status.

While they have a shark-like body, you can tell them apart by their long, tooth-lined 'saw' (rostrum) and the fact that their gill slits are located on their underside, which classifies them as a ray rather than a shark.

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