COLOMBO — The sawfish, a large ray, is easily recognized by its long, flattened snout edged with sharp, tooth-like projections that form a distinctive “saw,” technically known as a rostrum. Despite being one of the ocean’s most extraordinary creatures, very little research has been carried out on sawfish in Sri Lanka. This gap in knowledge prompted researchers at the Colombo-based Blue Resources Trust (BRT) to investigate a pressing question: Where have all Sri Lanka’s sawfish gone? Their islandwide survey, interviewing 300 fishers from 21 fishing harbors scattered along Sri Lanka’s coastline led to some alarming findings. None of the fishers under the age of 30 could identify a sawfish from photographs. Among those who had seen one, about half had not encountered a sawfish since 1992, and only 32 reported ever catching one, says Akshay Tanna, a researcher at the Blue Resources Trust. This juvenile sawfish was captured at an estuary in southern Balapitiya, exactly a decade ago, suggesting that refuges still exist where sawfish survive and require protection. Image courtesy of Blue Resources Trust. Older fishers, however, had very different recollections. Many over the age of 50 had encountered sawfish in Sri Lankan waters, suggesting that populations were once far more abundant. Some even remembered using sawfish rostra to construct fences to keep stray dogs away from drying fish, Tanna tells Mongabay. Fishers are often the most reliable source of such historical information, Tanna explains. Even if they had not personally caught a sawfish, news of unusual catches would…This article was originally published on Mongabay

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