Status and the potential for extinction of the largetooth sawfish Pristis pristis in the Atlantic Ocean

Abstract

1. Sawfishes currently are among the most threatened elasmobranchs in the world. Only two species inhabitAtlantic waters: the largetooth sawfish (Pristis pristis) and the smalltooth sawfish (Pristis pectinata), both havingsuffered dramatic declines in their ranges.2. The goal of this study was to evaluate the status ofP. pristisin the Atlantic, and estimate local extinction riskbased on historical and recent occurrence records. In order to accomplish these goals, a thorough search forhistorical and recent records ofP. pristisin the Atlantic was conducted, by reviewing scientific and popularliterature, museum specimens, and contacting regional scientists from the species’historical range.3. In total, 801P. pristisrecords (1830–2009) document its occurrence in four major regions in the Atlantic:USA (n = 41), Mexico and Central America (n = 535), South America (n = 162), and West Africa (n = 48).Locality data were not available for 15 records.4. Historical abundance centres were the Colorado-San Juan River system in Nicaragua and Costa Rica(and secondarily Lake Izabal of Guatemala), theAmazon estuary, and coastal Guinea-Bissau.5. Currently, the species faces drastic depletion throughout its entire former range and centres of abundance. Itappears to have been extirpated from several areas. The probability of extinction was highest in the USA, northernSouth America (Colombia to Guyane), and southern West Africa (Cameroon to Namibia).6. Currently, the Amazon estuary appears to have the highest remaining abundance ofP. pristisin the Atlantic,followed by the Colorado–San Juan River system in Nicaragua and Costa Rica and the Bissagos Archipelago inGuinea Bissau. Therefore the protection of these populations is crucial for the preservation and recovery of the species