The smalltooth sawfish can be found lurking around in temperate to tropical shallow coastal waters, in the Atlantic coast of the US and in East Africa. Of the six species of sawfish, the smalltooth is the largest.

It has up to 24-32 pairs of extra sharp blade-like teeth sticking out of its large snout. Each tooth is approximately the same size. The smalltooth’s body is shaped like a long slender shark with large fins. The opening for the gills is located on the underside. The mouth looks like that of a ray and is not so scary looking from the outside but you shouldn’t put your hand in there because it has thousands of tiny teeth inside.

They use their saw like snout to dig for food in the sand and mud, and they like to prey on smaller invertebrates. They also hunt by lashing out at fish with their saw blade and gobbling up the unfortunate injured prey. They have been known to accidently damage underwater cable lines. They are not generally aggressive fish but their spiky snout makes them a danger to fishermen, and to other sea creatures.