Document Type
Poster
Abstract
Sawfish are an endangered ray with a toothy rostrum containing a large number of teeth. Largetooth sawfish are a critically endangered species worldwide. Little is known about their life history or behavior, and natural populations are too low to easily track them. Preserved rostra are more accessible to study. Measurements of the rostrum teeth and rostrum length were taken which may indicate a subspecies or sexual dimorphism in the sample. 120 sawfish rostra from the Brazil sample were quantified using ImageJ to compare rostrum size to fish age and length. Sawfish rostral teeth have repeated tubule structures within them that might provide information about fish age, growth, and size. 7 teeth were imaged via micro-CT to quantify age using ring-like structures of internal tubule structures. Chemical analysis of 60 teeth, done via ICP-MS, may also provide information on migration, breeding, and juvenile rearing that is crucial to conservation efforts. Studying preserved rostra might aid the development of non-lethal methods to obtain basic information that is crucial to understanding the species.
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Publication Date
10-7-2023
Keywords
sawfish, rostrum, teeth, Pristis pristis, undergraduate research
Disciplines
Biology | Marine Biology
Recommended Citation
Truong, Linh; Gambleton, Gabe; and Hegg, Jens, "Understanding Endangered Sawfish through the Growth and Structure of their Rostral Teeth" (2023). CURCI Student Research. 2.
https://repository.gonzaga.edu/curcistudent/2
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Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Comments
This poster was presented at the 2023 Undergraduate Research Showcase hosted by Gonzaga University's Center for Undergraduate Research & Creative Inquiry.