Dear Boss,

Here is the information you requested on some potential ideas for the selective breeding process we are going to begin work on for the Small tooth Sawfish. I hope my ideas and information on the adaptations of the Small tooth Sawfish prove helpful in jump starting our selective breeding project. I have started with a complete classification of our subject the Small tooth Sawfish.

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Chondrichthyes
Order: Pristiformes
Family: Pristidae
Genus: Pristis
Species: pectinata

Even though there has not been extensive research on the changes in habitat of the Small tooth Sawfish as it ages, scientists have still been able to observe some of the adaptations of the Sawfish. Here are some of their adaptations:

The rostrum or the saw of the Small tooth Sawfish not only provides for a frightening defense to ward off predators and other enemies, but it is also used as a tool to catch food. Since the teeth that protrude from the sides of the rostrum can be rather sharp, the Sawfish can thrash back and forth through a school of fish and literally chop up a tasty meal. Also, they can use the saw to dig in the sand on the ocean floor to uncover a nice dinner.
Small tooth Sawfish have internal fertilization. The eggs form and hatch inside of the mother. She acts as an incubator for her young and they are released from her body when the gestation period is over. This can take up to five months.
Small tooth Sawfish are elasmobranches. Elasmobranches are skeletons made of cartilage. Other species included are rays and sharks. This is helpful these oceanic species because the cartilage allows for more maneuverability while swimming through the ocean.


I have chosen to focus on the rostrum to work with selective breeding. The rostrum makes up about a quarter of the body of the Small tooth Sawfish. It is completely made of cartilage except for the teeth that line the sides of the saw. My intentions on looking into using the rostrum for the selective breeding process are to focus on the cartilage for medical needs. I think the cartilage would be useful in helping with surgeries that focus on the need for new cartilage in areas of the body where cartilage has been destroyed. Plastic surgery would even be an area that cartilage is needed for facelifts, nose jobs, chin implants, etc. Since the Small tooth Sawfish reach up to 6 meters in length, I think that this would be a perfect amount of cartilage to use, but I am not so sure about how a human’s body would adapt to the cartilage. I also know that the cartilage located in the snout of the Saw fish may not be as sturdy as the cartilage contained in a humans body is. If we use selective breeding, we can weed out the species that has a more delicate snout and focus on breeding Saw fish with the stronger snouts and tougher cartilage to be used for medical reasons in a human’s body.

First, we will locate different specimens of Saw fish from different locations to see if there is a difference in the toughness of the snout. Once we find the Saw fish that we prefer, we will take specimens and keep them in our lab and hopefully have them breed. Of course in order to take proper care in making sure we have the right conditions for these animals, we must do some research on their habitats. Once they begin to breed we will test the toughness of the cartilage by taking small samples. We will do this by a means that will not harm the Saw fish. We will then allow them to keep breeding until we believe the cartilage produced is tough enough to be used in a human. We will then release the Saw fish that do not need to be used.

As I was coming up with this proposal it came to me that we may actually produce a newer, tougher breed of the Small tooth Saw fish that would help in its survival. Since the Saw fish tend to have a hard time up against larger predator like sharks and whales, this process of selective breeding could produce a potentially tougher breed that would have an easier time protecting it self against predators. I think with a sturdier rostrum this fish could have more luck in defending itself. While we are selectively breeding for tougher Saw fish, we could also be helping the species survive.

I do think that this proposal to selectively breed the Small tooth Sawfish for cartilage to be used in human surgeries is a good idea. I think it is a way to help in human surgeries as well as a way to help make the Small tooth Saw fish better suited for today’s oceans.


Sources:

(1) Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Fish and Wildlife
Research Institute: Small tooth Sawfish. 20 April 2007.
http://research.myfwc.com/features/view_article.asp?id=26160

(2) NOAA Fisheries Office of Protected Resources: Small tooth Sawfish
(pristis pectinata). 20 April 2007.
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/fish/smalltoothsawfish.htm

(3) FloridaSawFish.com 20 April 2007
www.floridasawfish.com