Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Categorising use patterns of non-marine environments by elasmobranchs and a review of their extinction risk

  • Reviews
  • Published:
Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

As the state of non-marine aquatic environments (freshwater and estuarine environments with salinities ≤ 30 ppt) continues to decline globally, there is increasing concern for elasmobranchs (sharks and rays) that use them at critical stages of their life history. Due to a range of impediments including unresolved taxonomy, lack of fisheries data, and poor public perception, our knowledge of elasmobranchs in non-marine environments has lagged behind marine species. Here, we refine previous categorisations of elasmobranchs that occur in non-marine environments by reviewing the timing and duration of freshwater (≤ 5ppt) and/or estuarine (> 5 to ≤ 30 ppt) habitat use throughout each species’ life history. We identified five categories describing elasmobranchs in non-marine environments: (1) freshwater obligates (43 spp.); (2) euryhaline generalists (10 spp.); (3) estuarine generalists (19 spp.); (4) non-marine transients; (5) non-marine vagrants. Criteria for species inclusion is provided for all categories, and species lists are presented for categories 1–3. Euryhaline and estuarine generalists had the highest number of species that are threatened with extinction on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (50% and 65%, respectively), and freshwater obligate species have a very high portion of Data Deficient and Not Evaluated species (77%). The refinement of non-marine elasmobranch categories will aid in our understanding of elasmobranchs that occur in non-marine environments, helping facilitate more strategic conservation and management initiatives. Research on the biology of elasmobranchs and their human interactions in non-marine environments are suggested, as this will lead to better availability of information for conservation and management.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Almeida MP, Viana AD, Barthem RB, Charvet-Almeida P (2009) Factors affecting the distribution and abundance of freshwater stingrays (Chondrichthyes: Potamotrygonidae) at Marajó Island, mouth of the Amazon River. Pan Am J Aquat Sci 4:1–11

    Google Scholar 

  • Appleyard S, White W, Vieira S, Sabub B (2018) Artisanal shark fishing in Milne Bay Province, Papua New Guinea: biomass estimation from genetically identified shark and ray fins. Sci Rep 8:1–12. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-25101-8

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Araújo M, Charvet-Almeida P, Almeida MP, Pereira H (2004) Freshwater stingrays (Potamotrygonidae): status, conservation and management challenges. Inf Doc AC 20:1–6

    Google Scholar 

  • Ballantyne JS, Robinson J (2010) Freshwater elasmobranchs: a review of their physiology and biochemistry. J Comp Physiol B 180:475–493. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00360-010-0447-0

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Barrios-Garrido H, Bolivar J, Benavides L, Viloria J, Dugarte F, Wildermann N (2017) Evaluation of the artisanal longline fishery and its effect on the longnose stingray (Dasyatis guttata) in Zapara Island, Gulf of Venezuela. Latin Am J Aquat Res 45:302–310

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bass AJ, D’Aubrey JDD, Kistnasamy (1973) Sharks of the east coast of southern Africa. I. The genus Carcharhinus (Carcharhinidae). Report number 33, Oceanographic Research Institute, Durban, South Africa

  • Bineesh KK, Moore ABM, Kyne PM (2014) Indo-west pacific, Chapter 7. In: Harrison LR, Dulvy NK (eds) Sawfish: a global conservation category. IUCN Species Survival Commission’s Shark Specialist Group, Vancouver, p 62

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown KT, Seeto J, Lal MM, Miller CE (2016) Discovery of an important aggregation area for endangered scalloped hammerhead sharks, Sphyrna lewini, in the Rewa River estuary, Fiji Islands. Pac Conserv Biol 22:242–248. https://doi.org/10.1071/pc14930

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Castello HP (1975) Hunting for freshwater stingrays. Trop Fish Hobbyist 23:19–34

    Google Scholar 

  • Castro JI (1993) The shark nursery of Bulls Bay, South Carolina, with a review of the shark nurseries of the southeastern coast of the United States. In: Demski LS, Wourms JP (eds) The reproduction and development of sharks, skates, rays and ratfishes. Springer, Dordrecht, pp 37–48. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-3450-9_4

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Charvet P, Santana F, De Lima K, Lessa R (2018) Age and growth of the endemic Xingu River stingray Potamotrygon leopoldi validated using fluorescent dyes. J Fish Biol 92:1985–1999

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Charvet-Almeida P, Araújo M, Almeida MPd (2005) Reproductive aspects of freshwater stingrays (Chondrichthyes: Potamotrygonidae) in the Brazilian Amazon Basin. J Northwest Atl Fish Sci 35:165–171

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chin A, Kyne PM, Walker TI, McAULEY R (2010) An integrated risk assessment for climate change: analysing the vulnerability of sharks and rays on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. Glob Change Biol 16:1936–1953. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2486.2009.02128.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cliff G, Dudley S (1991) Sharks caught in the protective gill nets off Natal, South Africa. 5. The Java shark Carcharhinus amboinensis (Müller & Henle). S Afr J Mar Sci 11:443–453. https://doi.org/10.2989/025776191784287817

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Collen B, Whitton F, Dyer EE, Baillie JE, Cumberlidge N, Darwall WR, Pollock C, Richman NI et al (2014) Global patterns of freshwater species diversity, threat and endemism. Glob Ecol Biogeogr 23:40–51. https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12096

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Collins AB, Heupel MR, Simpfendorfer CA (2008) Spatial distribution and long-term movement patterns of cownose rays Rhinoptera bonasus within an estuarine river. Estuaries Coasts 31:1174–1183. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-008-9100-5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Colonello JH, Lucifora LO, Massa AM (2006) Reproduction of the angular angel shark (Squatina guggenheim): geographic differences, reproductive cycle, and sexual dimorphism. ICES J Mar Sci 64:131–140

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Compagno L (2002) Freshwater and estuarine elasmobranch surveys in the Indo-Pacific region: threats, distribution and speciation. In: Fowler S, Reed T, Dipper F (eds) Elasmobranch Biodiversity, conservation and management: proceedings of the international seminar and workshop, Sabah, Malaysia, July, 1997. Information Press, Oxford, UK, pp 168–180

  • Compagno L, Cook S (1995) The exploitation and conservation of freshwater elasmobranchs: status of taxa and prospects for the future. J Aquaric Aquat Sci 7:62–91

    Google Scholar 

  • Compagno LJ, Roberts TR (1984) Dasyatidae. In: Daget J, Gosse J, van den Audenaerde TD (eds) Check-list of the freshwater fishes of Africa, Cloffa. Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique, Bruxelles, pp 4–5

    Google Scholar 

  • Cortés E (1998) Demographic analysis as an aid in shark stock assessment and management. Fish Res 39:199–208. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0165-7836(98)00183-0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cortés E (2000) Life history patterns and correlations in sharks. Rev Fish Sci 8:299–344. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408340308951115

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • da Silva NJ, Ferreira KRC, Pinto RNL, Aird SD (2015) A severe accident caused by an Ocellate River stingray (Potamotrygon motoro) in central Brazil: how well do we really understand stingray venom chemistry, envenomation, and therapeutics? Toxins 7:2272–2288. https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins7062272

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Darwall WRT, Holland RA, Smith KG, Allen D, Brooks EGE, Katarya V, Pollock CM, Shi Y et al (2011) Implications of bias in conservation research and investment for freshwater species. Conserv Lett 4:474–482. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-263X.2011.00202.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davidson LNK, Krawchuk MA, Dulvy NK (2016) Why have global shark and ray landings declined: improved management or overfishing? Fish Fish 17:438–458. https://doi.org/10.1111/faf.12119

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Bruyn PJN, Hofmeyr GJG, de Villiers MS (2006) First record of a vagrant Commerson’s dolphin, Cephalorhynchus commersonii, at the southern African continental shelf. Afr Zool 41:131–133. https://doi.org/10.1080/15627020.2006.11407343

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Duffy CAJ, Forrester ND, Gibson TK, Hathaway S (2017) Occurrence of the whitetip reef shark Triaenodon obesus at the Kermadec Islands, Southwest Pacific Ocean. N Z J Zool 44:354–360. https://doi.org/10.1080/03014223.2017.1340312

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dulvy NK, Fowler SL, Musick JA, Cavanagh RD, Kyne PM, Harrison LR, Carlson JK, Davidson LN et al (2014) Extinction risk and conservation of the world’s sharks and rays. Elife 3:e00590. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.00590

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Dulvy NK, Davidson LNK, Kyne PM, Simpfendorfer CA, Harrison LR, Carlson JK, Fordham SV (2016) Ghosts of the coast: global extinction risk and conservation of sawfishes. Aquat Conserv Mar Freshw Ecosyst 26:134–153. https://doi.org/10.1002/aqc.2525

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ebert D, Fowler S, Compagno L (2013) Sharks of the world. A fully illustrated guide. Wild Nature Press, Plymouth

    Google Scholar 

  • Elliott M, Whitfield AK, Potter IC, Blaber SJ, Cyrus DP, Nordlie FG, Harrison TD (2007) The guild approach to categorizing estuarine fish assemblages: a global review. Fish Fish 8:241–268

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Faria VV, McDavitt MT, Charvet P, Wiley TR, Simpfendorfer CA, Naylor GJP (2013) Species delineation and global population structure of critically endangered sawfishes (Pristidae). Zool J Linn Soc 167:136–164. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1096-3642.2012.00872.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Feitosa LM, Martins APB, Giarrizzo T, Macedo W, Monteiro IL, Gemaque R, Nunes JLS, Gomes F et al (2018) DNA-based identification reveals illegal trade of threatened shark species in a global elasmobranch conservation hotspot. Sci Rep 8:3347. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-21683-5

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Fluet-Chouinard E, Funge-Smith S, McIntyre PB (2018) Global hidden harvest of freshwater fish revealed by household surveys. Proc Natl Acad Sci 115:7623. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1721097115

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Frisk MG, Miller TJ, Fogarty MJ (2001) Estimation and analysis of biological parameters in elasmobranch fishes: a comparative life history study. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 58:969–981. https://doi.org/10.1139/f01-051

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gerst JW, Thorson TB (1977) Effects of saline acclimation on plasma electrolytes, urea excretion, and hepatic urea biosynthesis in a freshwater stingray, Potamotrygon sp. Garman, 1877. Comp Biochem Physiol A Physiol 56:87–93. https://doi.org/10.1016/0300-9629(77)90446-7

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Harasti D, Lee K, Bruce B, Gallen C, Bradford R (2017) Juvenile white sharks Carcharodon carcharias use estuarine environments in south-eastern. Aust Mar Biol 164:58. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-017-3087-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heupel MR, Simpfendorfer CA (2008) Movement and distribution of young bull sharks Carcharhinus leucas in a variable estuarine environment. Aquat Biol 1:277–289. https://doi.org/10.3354/ab00030

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heupel MR, Simpfendorfer CA, Collins AB, Tyminski JP (2006) Residency and movement patterns of bonnethead sharks, Sphyrna tiburo, in a large Florida estuary. Environ Biol Fishes 76:47–67. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-006-9007-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heupel MR, Carlson J, Simpfendorfer C (2007) Shark nursery areas: concepts, definition, characterization and assumptions. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 337:287–297. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps337287

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heupel MR, Yeiser BG, Collins AB, Ortega L, Simpfendorfer CA (2010) Long-term presence and movement patterns of juvenile bull sharks, Carcharhinus leucas, in an estuarine river system. Mar Freshw Res 61:1–10. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF09019

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Heupel MR, Simpfendorfer CA, Espinoza M, Smoothey AF, Tobin A, Peddemors V (2015) Conservation challenges of sharks with continental scale migrations. Front Mar Sci 2:12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2015.00012

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heupel MR, Munroe SEM, Lédée EJI, Chin A, Simpfendorfer CA (2019) Interspecific interactions, movement patterns and habitat use in a diverse coastal shark assemblage. Mar Biol 166:68. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-019-3511-7

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hueter R, Heupel M, Heist E, Keeney D (2004) Evidence of philopatry in sharks and implications for the management of shark fisheries. J Northwest Atl Fish Sci 35:1–10

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hutchings P (2017) An advocate for taxonomic research in Australia Pacific. Conserv Biol 25:34–36. https://doi.org/10.1071/PC17033

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ip YK, Tam WL, Wong WP, Chew SF (2005) Marine (Taeniura lymma) and freshwater (Himantura signifer) elasmobranchs synthesize urea for osmotic water retention. Physiol Biochem Zool 78:610–619. https://doi.org/10.1086/430236

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • IUCN (2018) The IUCN red list of threatened species, version 2018-2. http://www.iucnredlist.org

  • Kinney MJ, Simpfendorfer CA (2009) Reassessing the value of nursery areas to shark conservation and management. Conserv Lett 2:53–60. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-263X.2008.00046.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kinney MJ, Hussey NE, Fisk AT, Tobin AJ, Simpfendorfer CA (2011) Communal or competitive? Stable isotope analysis provides evidence of resource partitioning within a communal shark nursery. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 439:263–276. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps09327

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kirchhoff KN, Hauffe T, Stelbrink B, Albrecht C, Wilke T (2017) Evolutionary bottlenecks in brackish water habitats drive the colonization of fresh water by stingrays. J Evol Biol 30:1576–1591. https://doi.org/10.1111/jeb.13128

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Knip DM, Heupel MR, Simpfendorfer CA, Tobin AJ, Moloney J (2011a) Ontogenetic shifts in movement and habitat use of juvenile pigeye sharks Carcharhinus amboinensis in a tropical nearshore region. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 425:233–246. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps09006

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Knip DM, Heupel MR, Simpfendorfer CA, Tobin AJ, Moloney J (2011b) Wet-season effects on the distribution of juvenile pigeye sharks, Carcharhinus amboinensis, in tropical nearshore waters. Mar Freshw Res 62:658–667. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF10136

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kyne PM, Feutry P (2017) Recreational fishing impacts on threatened river sharks: a potential conservation issue. Ecol Manag Restor 18:209–213. https://doi.org/10.1111/emr.12266

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kyne PM, Simpfendorfer CA (2014) Indo-west pacific, Chapter 7. In: Harrison LR, Dulvy NK (eds) Sawfish: a global conservation category. IUCN Species Survival Commission’s Shark Specialist Group, Vancouver, p 64

    Google Scholar 

  • Last P (2002) Freshwater and estuarine elasmobranchs of Australia. In: Fowler S, Reed T, Dipper F (eds) Elasmobranch biodiversity, conservation and management: proceedings of the international seminar and workshop, Sabah, Malaysia, July, 1997. Information Press, Oxford, UK, pp 185–193

  • Last P, Naylor G, Séret B, White W, Stehmann M, de Carvalho M (2016a) Rays of the world. CSIRO Publishing, Clayton

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Last PR, Naylor G, Manjaji-Matsumoto BM (2016b) A revised classification of the family Dasyatidae (Chondrichthyes: Myliobatiformes) based on new morphological and molecular insights. Zootaxa 4139:345–368

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Last PR, White WT, Kyne PM (2016c) Urogymnus acanthobothrium sp. nov., a new euryhaline whipray (Myliobatiformes: Dasyatidae) from Australia and Papua New Guinea. Zootaxa 4147:162. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4147.2.4

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lees AC, Gilroy JJ (2014) Vagrancy fails to predict colonization of oceanic islands. Glob Ecol Biogeogr 23:405–413. https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.12129

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lennox RJ, Crook DA, Moyle PB, Struthers DP, Cooke SJ (2019) Toward a better understanding of freshwater fish responses to an increasingly drought-stricken world. Rev Fish Biol Fish. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11160-018-09545-9

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li C, Corrigan S, Yang L, Straube N, Harris M, Hofreiter M, White WT, Naylor GJP (2015) DNA capture reveals transoceanic gene flow in endangered river sharks. Proc Natl Acad Sci 112:13302–13307. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1508735112

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lozano IE, Llamazares Vegh S, Gómez MI, Piazza YG, Salva JL, Fuentes CM (2019) Episodic recruitment of young Prochilodus lineatus (Valenciennes, 1836) (Characiformes: Prochilodontidae) during high discharge in a floodplain lake of the River Paraná, Argentina. Fish Manage Ecol 26:260–268. https://doi.org/10.1111/fme.12348

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lucifora LO, Carvalho MR, Kyne PM, White WT (2015) Freshwater sharks and rays. Curr Biol 25:971–973. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2015.06.051

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lucifora LO, Barbini SA, Vegh SL, Scarabotti PA, Vargas F, Solari A, Mabragaña E, Díaz de Astarloa JM (2016) Geographic distribution of the short-tailed river stingray (Potamotrygon brachyura): assessing habitat loss and fishing as threats to the world’s largest obligate freshwater elasmobranch. Mar Freshw Res 67:1463–1478. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF15003

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lucifora LO, Balboni L, Scarabotti PA, Alonso FA, Sabadin DE, Solari A, Vargas F, Barbini SA et al (2017) Decline or stability of obligate freshwater elasmobranchs following high fishing pressure. Biol Conserv 210:293–298. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2017.04.028

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manjaji-Matsumoto BM, Last PR (2006) Himantura lobistoma, a new whipray (Rajiformes: Dasyatidae) from Borneo, with comments on the status of Dasyatis microphthalmus. Ichthyol Res 53:290–297. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-006-0350-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Márquez-Farías JF (2007) Reproductive biology of shovelnose guitarfish Rhinobatos productus from the eastern Gulf of California México. Mar Biol 151:1445–1454. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00227-006-0599-3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martin AR (2005) Conservation of freshwater and euryhaline elasmobranchs: a review. J Mar Biol Assoc UK 85:1049–1073. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0025315405012105

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martins A, Heupel M, Chin A, Simpfendorfer C (2018) Batoid nurseries: definition, use and importance. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 595:253–267. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps12545

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McLusky DS (1993) Marine and estuarine gradients—an overview. Neth J Aquat Ecol 27:489–493. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02334809

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mills CA, Mann RHK (1985) Environmentally-induced fluctuations in year-class strength and their implications for management. J Fish Biol 27:209–226. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-8649.1985.tb03243.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moore ABM (2017) Are guitarfishes the next sawfishes? Extinction risk and an urgent call for conservation action. Endanger Species Res 34:75–88. https://doi.org/10.3354/esr00830

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moreau MA, Coomes OT (2007) Aquarium fish exploitation in western Amazonia: conservation issues in Peru. Environ Conserv 34:12–22. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0376892907003566

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morgan DL, Whitty JM, Phillips NM, Thorburn DC, Chaplin JA, McAuley R (2011) North-western Australia as a hotspot for endangered elasmobranchs with particular reference to sawfishes and the northern river shark. J R Soc West Aust 2:345–358

    Google Scholar 

  • Muktha M, Akhilesh KV, Sukumaran S, Kizhakudan S (2019) A new report confirming the presence of bennett’s stingray, Hemitrygon Bennettii (Elasmobranchii: Myliobatiformes: Dasyatidae), from the Western Bay of Bengal. Acta Ichthyol Piscat 49:101–108. https://doi.org/10.3750/AIEP/02474

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ng PK, Chou L, Lam T (1993) The status and impact of introduced freshwater animals in Singapore. Biol Conserv 64:19–24

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ng HH, Tan HH, Yeo DC, Ng PK (2010) Stingers in a strange land: South American freshwater stingrays (Potamotrygonidae) in Singapore. Biol Invasions 12:2385–2388

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Norton DA (1998) Revisiting rarity: a botanical perspective on the meanings of rarity and the classification of New Zealand’s uncommon plants. In: Ecosystems, entomology and plants: proceedings of a symposium held at Lincoln University to mark the retirement of Bryony Macmillan, John Dugdale, Peter Wardle and Brian Molloy, 1 September 1995. Royal Society of New Zealand, p 145

  • Otake T, Ishii T, Tanaka S (2005) Otolith strontium: calcium ratios in a freshwater stingray, Himantura signifer (Compagno and Roberts, 1982), from the Chao Phraya River, Thailand. Coast Mar Sci 29:147–153

    Google Scholar 

  • Peverell SC (2005) Distribution of sawfishes (Pristidae) in the Queensland Gulf of Carpentaria, Australia, with notes on sawfish ecology. Environ Biol Fishes 73:391–402. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-005-1599-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Piermarini P, Evans D (1998) Osmoregulation of the Atlantic Stingray (Dasyatis sabina) from the Freshwater Lake Jesup of the St. Johns River, Florida. Physiol Zool 71:553–560. https://doi.org/10.1086/515973

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pillans RD, Franklin CE (2004) Plasma osmolyte concentrations and rectal gland mass of bull sharks Carcharhinus leucas, captured along a salinity gradient. Comp Biochem Physiol A: Mol Integr Physiol 138:363–371. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpb.2004.05.006

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pillans RD, Good JP, Anderson WG, Hazon N, Franklin CE (2005) Freshwater to seawater acclimation of juvenile bull sharks (Carcharhinus leucas): plasma osmolytes and Na +/K + -ATPase activity in gill, rectal gland, kidney and intestine. J Comp Physiol B 175:37–44. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00360-004-0460-2

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pillans RD, Stevens JD, Kyne PM, Salini J (2009) Observations on the distribution, biology, short-term movements and habitat requirements of river sharks Glyphis spp. in northern Australia. Endanger Species Res 10:321–332. https://doi.org/10.3354/esr00206

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pinto R, Marques JC (2015) Ecosystem services in estuarine systems: implications for management. In: Chicharo L, Müller F, Fohrer N (eds) Ecosystem services and river basin ecohydrology. Springer, Dordrecht, pp 319–341. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9846-4_16

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Potter IC, Tweedley JR, Elliott M, Whitfield AK (2015) The ways in which fish use estuaries: a refinement and expansion of the guild approach. Fish Fish 16:230–239

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Poulakis GR, Stevens PW, Timmers AA, Wiley TR, Simpfendorfer CA (2011) Abiotic affinities and spatiotemporal distribution of the endangered smalltooth sawfish, Pristis pectinata, in a south-western Florida nursery. Mar Freshw Res 62:1165–1177. https://doi.org/10.1071/mf11008

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ramsden S, Cotton CF, Curran MC (2017) Using acoustic telemetry to assess patterns in the seasonal residency of the Atlantic stingray Dasyatis sabina. Environ Biol Fishes 100:89–98

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reid GM, Contreras MT, Csatádi K (2013) Global challenges in freshwater-fish conservation related to public aquariums and the aquarium industry. Int Zoo Yearb 47:6–45. https://doi.org/10.1111/izy.12020

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rosa RS, Charvet-Almeida P, Quijada CCD (2010) Biology of the South American potamotrygonid stingrays. In: Carrier J, Musick JA, Heithaus MR (eds) Sharks and their relatives II: biodiversity, adaptive physiology, and conservation. CRC Press, Boca Raton, pp 241–285

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Salini JP, Blaber SJM, Brewer DT (1990) Diets of piscivorous fishes in a tropical Australian estuary, with special reference to predation on penaeid prawns. Mar Biol 105:363–374. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf01316307

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schwartz FJ (1995) Elasmobranchs frequenting fresh and low saline waters of North Carolina during 1971–1991. J Aquaric Aquat Sci 7:45–51

    Google Scholar 

  • Séret B (1990) Dasyatidae In: Lévêque C, Paugy D, Teugels GG (eds) Faune des poissons d’eaux douces et saumâtres de l’Afrique de l’Ouest- The fresh and brackish water fishes of West Africa: Tome 1. Coll. Faune Tropicale n28. ORSTOM, Paris, France, pp 62–75

  • Simpfendorfer CA, Milward NE (1993) Utilisation of a tropical bay as a nursery area by sharks of the families Carcharhinidae and Sphyrnidae. Environ Biol Fishes 37:337–345. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf00005200

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simpfendorfer CA, Freitas GG, Wiley TR, Heupel MR (2005) Distribution and habitat partitioning of immature bull sharks (Carcharhinus leucas) in a southwest Florida Estuary. Estuaries 28:78–85. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02732755

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simpfendorfer CA, Heupel MR, White WT, Dulvy NK (2011a) The importance of research and public opinion to conservation management of sharks and rays: a synthesis. Mar Freshw Res 62:518–527. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF11086

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Simpfendorfer CA, Yeiser BG, Wiley TR, Poulakis GR, Stevens PW, Heupel MR (2011b) Environmental influences on the spatial ecology of juvenile smalltooth sawfish (Pristis pectinata): results from acoustic monitoring. PLoS ONE 6:e16918. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0016918

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Smith VH (2003) Eutrophication of freshwater and coastal marine ecosystems a global problem. Environ Sci Pollut Res 10:126–139. https://doi.org/10.1065/espr2002.12.142

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Stevens J, McLoughlin K (1991) Distribution, size and sex composition, reproductive biology and diet of sharks from Northern Australia. Mar Freshw Res 42:151–199. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF9910151

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tam WL, Wong WP, Loong AM, Hiong KC, Chew SF, Ballantyne JS, Ip YK (2003) The osmotic response of the Asian freshwater stingray (Himantura signifer) to increased salinity: a comparison with marine (Taeniura lymma) and Amazonian freshwater (Potamotrygon motoro) stingrays. J Exp Biol 206:2931–2940. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.00510

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Taniuchi T (2002) Outline of field surveys for freshwater elasmobranchs conducted by a Japanese research team. In: Fowler S, Reed T, Dipper F (eds) Elasmobranch biodiversity, conservation and management: proceedings of the international seminar and workshop, Sabah, Malaysia, July, 1997. Information Press, Oxford, UK, pp 181–184

  • Thorburn DC, Rowland AJ (2008) Juvenile bull sharks’ Carcharhinus leucas (Valenciennes, 1839) in northern Australian rivers. Beagle Rec Mus Art Galleries North Territ 24:79–86

    Google Scholar 

  • Thorburn D, Peverell S, Stevens J, Last P, Rowland A (2003) Status of freshwater and estuarine elasmobranchs in northern Australia. Final Report to Natural Heritage Trust

  • Thorburn DC, Morgan DL, Rowland AJ, Gill HS, Paling E (2008) Life history notes of the critically endangered dwarf sawfish, Pristis clavata, Garman 1906 from the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Environ Biol Fishes 83:139–145. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-007-9306-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thorson TB (1971) Movement of bull sharks, Carcharhinus leucas, between Caribbean Sea and Lake Nicaragua demonstrated by tagging. Copeia 1971:336–338. https://doi.org/10.2307/1442846

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thorson TB (1976) Observations on the reproduction of the sawfish, Pristis perotteti, in lake Nicaragua, with recommendations for its conservation. Investig Ichthyofauna Nicar Lakes 53:641–650

    Google Scholar 

  • Thorson TB (1982) Life history implications of a tagging study of the largetooth sawfish, Pristis perotteti, in the Lake Nicaragua-Río San Juan system. Environ Biol Fishes 7:207–228. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf00002497

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thorson TB (1983) Observations on the morphology, ecology, and life history of the euryhaline stingray, Dasyatis guttata (Bloch and Schneider, 1801). Acta Biologica Venezuelica 11:92–125

    Google Scholar 

  • Thorson TB (1987) Human impacts on shark populations. In: Cook SF (ed) Sharks: an inquiry into biology, behaviour, fisheries and use. Oregon Sea Grant Publication EM8330, Oregon State University, Corvallis, pp 31–37

  • Thorson TB, Cowan CM, Watson DE (1973) Body fluid solutes of juveniles and adults of the euryhaline bull shark Carcharhinus leucas from freshwater and saline environments. Physiol Zool 46:29–42. https://doi.org/10.1086/physzool.46.1.30152514

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Thorson TB, Wotton RM, Georgi TA (1978) Rectal gland of freshwater stingrays, Potamotrygon spp. (Chondrichthyes: Potamotrygonidae). Biol Bull 154:508–516

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Thorson T, Brooks D, Mayes M (1983) The evolution of freshwater adaptation in stingrays. Natl Geogr Soc Res Rep 15:663–694

    Google Scholar 

  • Treloar MA, Barrett NS, Edgar GJ (2017) Biology and ecology of Zearaja maugeana, an Endangered skate restricted to two south-western Tasmanian estuaries. Mar Freshw Res 68:821–830. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF15478

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whatmough S, Van Putten I, Chin A (2011) From hunters to nature observers: a record of 53 years of diver attitudes towards sharks and rays and marine protected areas. Mar Freshw Res 62:755–763. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF10142

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • White WT, Kyne PM (2010) The status of chondrichthyan conservation in the Indo-Australasian region. J Fish Biol 76:2090–2117. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-8649.2010.02654.x

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • White WT, Appleyard SA, Sabub B, Kyne PM, Harris M, Lis R, Baje L, Usu T et al (2015) Rediscovery of the threatened river sharks, Glyphis garricki and G. glyphis, in Papua New Guinea. PLoS ONE 10:e0140075. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0140075

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • White WT, Appleyard SA, Kyne PM, Mana RR (2017) Sawfishes in Papua New Guinea: a preliminary investigation into their status and level of exploitation. Endanger Species Res 32:277–291. https://doi.org/10.3354/esr00810

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitty J, Morgan D, Thorburn D, Fazeldean T, Peverell S (2008) Tracking the movements of freshwater sawfish (Pristis microdon) and northern river sharks (Glyphis sp. C) in the Fitzroy River. In: Whitty JM, Phillips NM, Morgan D, Chaplin JA, Thorburn DC, Peverell SC (eds) Habitat associations of Freshwater Sawfish (Pristis microdon) and Northern River Shark (Glyphis sp. C): including genetic analysis of P. microdon across northern Australia. Centre for Fish & Fisheries Research (Murdoch University) report to the Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Australian Government, pp 8–46

  • Whitty JM, Morgan DL, Peverell SC, Thorburn DC, Beatty SJ (2009) Ontogenetic depth partitioning by juvenile freshwater sawfish (Pristis microdon: Pristidae) in a riverine environment. Mar Freshw Res 60:306–316. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF08169

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitty JM, Keleher J, Ebner BC, Gleiss AC, Simpfendorfer CA, Morgan DL (2017) Habitat use of a critically endangered elasmobranch, the largetooth sawfish Pristis pristis, in an intermittently flowing riverine nursery. Endanger Species Res 34:211–227. https://doi.org/10.3354/esr00837

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wiley TR, Simpfendorfer CA (2007) The ecology of elasmobranchs occurring in the Everglades National Park, Florida: implications for conservation and management. Bull Mar Sci 80:171–189

    Google Scholar 

  • Wong SZH, Ching B, Chng YR, Wong WP, Chew SF, Ip YK (2013) Ascorbic acid biosynthesis and brackish water acclimation in the euryhaline freshwater White–Rimmed stingray, Himantura signifer. PLoS ONE 8:e66691. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0066691

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Xiong W, Sui X, Liang S-H, Chen Y (2015) Non-native freshwater fish species in China. Rev Fish Biol Fish 25:651–687. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11160-015-9396-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yeiser BG, Heupel MR, Simpfendorfer CA (2008) Occurrence, home range and movement patterns of juvenile bull (Carcharhinus leucas) and lemon (Negaprion brevirostris) sharks within a Florida estuary. Mar Freshw Res 59:489–501. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF07181

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yokota L, Lessa RP (2007) Reproductive biology of three ray species: Gymnura micrura (Bloch & Schneider, 1801), Dasyatis guttata (Bloch & Schneider, 1801) and Dasyatis marianae Gomes, Rosa & Gadig, 2000, caught by artisanal fisheries in Northeastern Brazil. Cah Biol Mar 48:249

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhang J, Yamaguchi A, Zhou Q, Zhang C (2010) Rare occurrences of Dasyatis bennettii (Chondrichthyes: Dasyatidae) in freshwaters of Southern China. J Appl Ichthyol 26:939–941. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0426.2010.01525.x

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to extend their thanks to Stacy Beirwagon for valuable assistance with producing maps for this manuscript. We also thank the Save Our Seas Foundation for their ongoing support of our research. MIG was supported by an Australian Post Graduate Award, and PMK was supported by the Shark Conservation Fund, and the Marine Biodiversity Hub, a collaborative partnership supported through funding from the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program. Finally, we thank three anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments on this MS.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Sustainable Tropical Fisheries and Aquaculture and College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, 1 James Cook Drive, Townsville, QLD, 4811, Australia

    Michael I. Grant, Colin A. Simpfendorfer & Andrew Chin

  2. Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Ellengowan Drive, Darwin, NT, 0909, Australia

    Peter M. Kyne

  3. CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, 3–4 Castray Esplanade, Hobart, TAS, 7004, Australia

    William T. White

  4. Australian National Fish Collection, CSIRO National Research Collections Australia, Hobart, TAS, 7004, Australia

    William T. White

Authors
  1. Michael I. Grant
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Peter M. Kyne
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Colin A. Simpfendorfer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. William T. White
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Andrew Chin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michael I. Grant.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Grant, M.I., Kyne, P.M., Simpfendorfer, C.A. et al. Categorising use patterns of non-marine environments by elasmobranchs and a review of their extinction risk. Rev Fish Biol Fisheries 29, 689–710 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11160-019-09576-w

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11160-019-09576-w

Keywords

Search

Navigation