Pristiophoridae

(saw sharks), a family of fishes. The ensiform snout, which has sharp teeth along both sides, resembles a two-sided saw. Unlike sawfish of the genus Pristis, saw sharks have a pair of long cirra and lateral gill openings. They reach a length of 1.5 m and are viviparous. There are two genera, embracing four species. Saw sharks are distributed in the warm western waters of the Pacific and Indian oceans. They feed “on small fish and on invertebrates, which they dig out from the bottom with their snout. Saw sharks have some commercial value.