UNF’s Shark Biology Program has tagged the first sawfish recorded in its 16 years of surveying shark populations in Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia. Researcher Jim Gelsleichter and team found the 9.9-foot smalltooth sawfish in the St. Marys River. The surveys are supported by NOAA Fisheries.

The U.S. sawfish population experienced dramatic declines in the 20th century due to incidental capture, trophy fishing, and habitat decline and was the first marine fish listed as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. Since then, the species has shown signs of slow recovery, but remains at risk. In the first half of 2024, 53 sawfish deaths due to an unknown “spinning and whirling” disease were reported.

• James Gelsleichter