Bahamas sawshark
| Bahamas sawshark | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Chondrichthyes |
| Subclass: | Elasmobranchii |
| Division: | Selachii |
| Order: | Pristiophoriformes |
| Family: | Pristiophoridae |
| Genus: | Pristiophorus |
| Species: | P. schroederi |
| Binomial name | |
| Pristiophorus schroederi S. Springer & Bullis, 1960 | |
| Range of Bahamas sawshark (in blue) | |
The Bahamas sawshark, Pristiophorus schroederi, is a sawshark of the family Pristiophoridae, found in the western Central Atlantic Ocean from the Bahamas and Cuba at depths of between 400 and 1,000 m. These sharks are at least 80 cm long.
The Bahamas sawshark is found on continental and insular slopes. Its reproduction is ovoviviparous.
Pristiophorus schroederi is the first member of the sawsharks (family Pristiophoridae) described from the western hemisphere. Like its family members, it is most likely a descendant of the Cenozoic sawshark, Pristiophorus lanceolatus from New Zealand and Australia. It is a poorly known family and only consists of six members: P. cirratus, P. delicatus, P. japinicus, P. nancyae, P. nudipinnis, and P. schroederi. Three specimens of Pristiophoridae schroederi were discovered; 38.3, 64.5, and 80.5 centimeters in length, were collected by an incidental product of exploratory fishing operations by the U.S. Bureau of Commercial Fisheries. One was discovered in the Santaren Channel and two from the Atlantic, just north of Little Bahama Bank.