Species presumed extinct - green sawfish
Green sawfish. Illustration: Pat Tully
Important information
Scientific name - Pristis zijsron
Distribution - Green sawfish were once widely distributed in the northern Indian Ocean, around south and south-east Asia and around northern Australia and have been recorded as far south as Jervis Bay. The last confirmed sighting of the green sawfish in NSW was in 1972 from the Clarence River at Yamba.
Size - At least 5m in Australian waters.
Characteristics - Green sawfish have a shark-like body and a flattened head with a narrow blade-like snout studded with 24-28 pairs of ‘rostral teeth’. They are greenish brown or olive in colour on the upper surfaces and pale whitish below.
Confusing species - Saw sharks.