Abstract
A pilot study targeting sawfishes in the southern Pilbara region of Western Australia, which is undergoing a major expansion in human activity, was conducted using gillnets during April and October 2011 in the Ashburton Estuary and adjacent mangrove creeks. Catch per unit effort was greatest in the Ashburton Estuary in October, due to an influx of green sawfish Pristis zijsron pups, and was orders of magnitude higher than previously reported for any Pristidae; the study sites contained P. zijsron up to almost 3 m total length. This study identified the first pupping site for P. zijsron in Western Australia, and the most southerly known nursery area for the species in Australian waters, and is potentially the most important globally.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1658-1663 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Journal of fish biology |
Volume | 86 |
Issue number | 5 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - May 1 2015 |
Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2015 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles.
Keywords
- Ashburton river
- Endangered species
- Fish
- Fishing
- Mangrove
- Pristidae