News Animals

A built-in pocket protector keeps sawfish from ‘sword fighting’ in the womb

Scientists get the first close look at an ephemeral organ that covers the rays’ toothy snout

A fish with a long, sawtooth-like snout in murky water, held by a person's hands

A researcher releases a young smalltooth sawfish that has been tagged for study into Tampa Bay. These rays are born with a protective skinlike sheath around their toothed snout that sheds within about four days after birth.

Matthew Bernanke, NMFS ESA Permit No. 25864

By Natalie van Hoose

Smalltooth sawfish develop their signature, long, tooth-lined snout while still in the womb.